
Class _il..j:^ 



Book 



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Gopyiightj^i 



COPYRIGHT DEPOSm 



SOILS AND FERTILIZERS 

FOR PUBLIC SCHOOLS 



A Discussion Upon the Nature and Treatment of 
Soils and the Value of Fertilizers 



By CHAS. L. QUEAR 

Instructor in Charge of the Agriculture Department of the 

Muncie Normal. Two Years Acting Field Manager of the 

Guaranteed Seed Company, Piano, III. Two Years 

Field Adjuster, Farm Machinery Co. Co-Author, 

National System of Industrial Education. 



Edited by O. L. BOOR 

Graduate Ontario Veterinary College, Ontario, Canada. Acting 

Secretary of State Veterinary Examining Board. 

Practicing Veterinary Science, Muncie, Ind. 



Copyrighted 1915 

by 
Chas. L.. Quear. 



FEB -5 1915 



>Ci,A3ni600 






TT^OR their invaluable assistance by way of help- 
ful suggestions and encouragement in the 
preparation of this book, the author desires to give 
special acknowledgment to M. G. Burton, editor- 
in-chief of the National System of Industrial Edu- 
cation, and to Julian R. Steward, dean of the 
Agricultural Department of the Muncie Normal 
Institute. 




UNDIRECTED PLAY 




DIRECTED PLAY 



INTRODUCTION. 

Scope and Purpose of a Text on Soils and Fertilizers for Beginners. In- 
structions to Teachers and Directions for Pursuing This Work. 

CHAPTER I. 

CONDITIONS NECESSARY FOR PLANT LIFE. 

Introduction — Conditions Necessary for Plant Growth — Work Required to 
Produce a Rain — Moisture and Warmth — What Happens to the Seed — Where 
the Little Plant Gets Food — Use of the Parts of the Plant — Air in Relation 
to Plant Life — Carbon — Relationship Between Plants and Animals — The 
Amount of a Plant That Comes from the Air — Water in the Air — Water in 
Relation to Plant Life — Water As a Food — Water As the Blood of the Plant — 
How Water Gets into the Plant — Plants Resemble Animals — Plant Foods — 
Elements and Compounds — Organic and Mineral Substances — Mechanical 
Support of Plants. 

EXPERIMENTS. 

1. The Effect of Heat upon Plant Growth — 2. The Effect of Light upon 
Plant Growth — 3. The Effect of Moisture Upon Plant Growth — 4. To Show 
That There Is Air in the Soil — 5. Mineral Substance and Organic Substance. 

AGRICULTURAL APPARATUS AND HOW IT IS MADE. 

Window Box — Flower Pot Stand — Plant Label. 

QUESTIONS AND PROBLEMS. 

CHAPTER II. 

HOW SOILS ARE FORMED. 

What Soil Is — Mineral Matter — Organic Matter — Soil Moisture — Soil 
Air — Necessary Soil Conditions — How Soils Are Formed — Air As an Agent of 
Soil Formation — Chemical Action of Air — Oxidation — Temperature As an 
Agent of Soil Formation — Water As an Agent of Soil Formation — Plants As 
an Agent of Soil Formation — Animals As an Agent of Soil Formation — Culti- 
vation As an Agent of Soil Formation — Texture and Structure. 

EXPERIMENTS. 

6. To Show That the Roots of a Plant Give Off Acid — 7. To Determine 
How a Soil Becomes Acid — 8. Rain Water and Soil Water — 9. To Show That 
Water Dissolves Mineral Matter from the Soil — 10. Oxidation. 

AGRICULTURAL APPARATUS AND HOW IT IS MADE. 

Percolation Rack — Flower Pot — Fire Kindlers — How to Make a Still Out 
of Cake Tins. 

QUESTIONS AND PROBLEMS. 

CHAPTER III. 

CLASSES OF SOILS. 

How Soils Are Classified— Clay— Clay a Cold Soil— Why Clay Is Called 
Heavy — Plant Food in a Clay Soil — Loam — Muck — Peat — Humus — Fertility 
and Humus — Nature of Humus — Supply of Humus — Conditions Favorable for 



the Formation of Humus — Relation of Mineral Substances to Decay — Value 
of Humus on a Soil — Sand — the Subsoil. 

EXPERIMENTS. 

11. Diiference in Soils Demonstrated — 12. Physical Composition of Soils 
— 13. Temperature of Light and Dark Soils — 14. Why a Soil Becomes 
Cloddy. 

AGRICULTURAL APPARATUS AND HOW IT IS MADE. 

A Soil Screen — Home Made Scales — Scoops from Tin Cans — How to 
Sharpen Scissors. 

QUESTIONS AND PROBLEMS. 

CHAPTER IV. 

SOIL IMPROVEMENT. 

The Problem of the Farmer — Improvement of a Clay Soil — Soil Plowed 
Wet — Acid in a Clay Soil — Effect of Drainage on a Clay Soil — Effect of 
Humus on Clay — Improvement of a Loam Soil — Crops for Loam Soil — Im- 
provement of Muck Soils — Improvement of Sandy Soils — Humus on Sandy 
Soils- — Plowing at the Same Depth' — How Plants Live in Different Soils. 

EXPERIMENTS. 

15. Planning a Rotation — 16. The Value of Organic Plant Food — 
17. Water Holding Power of Soils — 18. Rapidity of Percolation in Different 
Soils — 19. The Effect of Organic Matter on the Tenacity of Soils. 

AGRICULTURAL APPARATUS AND HOW IT IS MADE. 

Soil Bins — A Rope or a Monkey Wrench Substituted for a Pipe Wrench — 
A Straight Edge. 

QUESTIONS AND PROBLEMS. 

CHAPTER V. 

SOIL MOISTURE. 

Free Water — Capillary Water — Where Capillarity Is Greatest — Method 
of Showing Capillary Action — Hygroscopic Water — Soil Mulches to Conserve 
Water — The Water Holding Capacity of Soils — The Conservation of Soil 
Moisture. 

EXPERIMENTS. 

20. Effect of Soils on the Absorption of Substances from Solution — 
21. Capillarity — 22. Distance Capillarity Will Lift Water — 23. The Three 
Kinds of Moisture in the Soil — 24. Water Consumed by a Plant. 

AGRICULTURAL APPARATUS AND HOW IT IS MADE. 

Dirt Band — Flat for Growing Plants — A Line Winder. 

QUESTIONS AND PROBLEMS. 

CHAPTER VI. 

DRAINAGE. 

A Plants Problem — A Wet Soil — The Value of Drainage — Drainage 
Gives Roots More Room — Drainage Increases Weathering Action — Drainage 
Raises the Soil Temperature — Indications That Drainage Is Needed — Drain- 



age Prevents Heaving — History of Drains — Hollow Tile for Underground 
Drains— Hov*^ Drainage Is Accomplished — Underground Drainage by Covered 
Drains — Drainage by Means of Open Ditches — Laying a Drain — Distance 
Apart and Size of Drains — Staking for a Drain — How Water and Air Get 
into a Drain — Soils That Should Have Drainage. 

EXPERIMENTS. 

25. Effect of Lime on Turbid Water — 26. The Effect of Lime on Soils— 
27. The Effect of Drainage upon Plant Growth — 28. Temperature of Drained 
and Undrained Soils, 

AGRICULTURAL APPARATUS AND HOW IT IS MADE. 

Specimen Case for Exhibit of Plant Foods — Mount for Small Samples. 

QUESTIONS AND PROBLEMS. 

CHAPTER VIL 

TILLAGE. 

Frontispiece; The Story of Tillage — Tillage — Purpose of Tillage — The 
Value of Securing Good Tilth — How Nature Maintains Fertility — Relation of 
Tilth to Root System — Continued Cultivation Injurious — To Restore Tilth — 
Effect of Moisture upon Plowing — Tools for Tillage — For Deep Tillage — For 
Shallow Tillage — The Plow — The Mouldboard Plow — Kinds of Mouldboards 
— The Disk Plow — Depth of Plowing — Fall Plowing — The Subsoil Plow — 
The Disk Harrow — Rollers — Use of the Roller — Cultivators — Garden Culti- 
vators. 

EXPERIMENTS. 

29. Soil Mulches — 30. Rolling a Soil Increases Capillarity — 31. The 
Effect of Puddling a Soil — 32. Action of Frost on Soils — 38. The Plow. 

AGRICULTURAL APPARATUS AND HOW IT IS MADE. 

Corn Sheller — Tool Box. 

QUESTIONS AND PROBLEMS. 

CHAPTER VIII. 

ELEMENTS VALUABLE IN FERTILIZERS. 

Classes of Fertilizers — Value of Indirect Fertilizers — Nitrogen — How 
Plants Obtain Nitrogen — Nature of Bacteria — Partnership Between Plants — 
Life of Bacteria — Classes of Bacteria — How to Supply Bacteria — Legumes 
and Fertility — Legumes Do Not Always Obtain Nitrogen — Forms of Nitrogen 
— Phosphorus — How Phosphorus Is Removed from a Soil — How to Supply 
Phosphorus — Forms of Phosphorus — Raw Rock Phosphate — Acid Phosphate — 
Potash — Lime — Acids and Bases — How Lime Came into Use As a Fertilizer — 
Lime Stops the Waste of Phosphorus and Nitrogen — Add Limestone — Raw or 
Natural Lime — Burned Lime — Slaked Lime — Applying Lime — Cost of Lime- 
stone — Indications That Lime Is Needed. 

EXPERIMENTS. 

34. Testing Soils for Nitrogen — 35. Testing Soil for Acidity. 

QUESTIONS AND PROBLEMS. 



CHAPTER IX. 

NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FERTILIZERS. 

When to Buy Fertilizers — How to Tell the Value of a Fertilizer — The 
Amount of Plant Food in a Comj)lete Fertilizer — Barnyard Manure — A Picture 
Story (eight pictures) — Spreading Manure — Waste of Manure — Storage of 
Manures — Green Manures — Ideal Crop for Green Manure — Rye As a Green 
Manure Crop — Vetch — Clovers As Green Manures — Cow Peas and Soy Beans 
As Green Manure Crops. 

EXPERIMENTS. 

36. Testing Soils for Acid by Means of Ammonia — 37. The Effect of 
Different Kinds of Soil Mulches — 38. Plant Food Collection. 

AGRICULTURAL APPARATUS AND HOW IT IS MADE. 

Depth Planting Box^Alcohol Lamp from a Tin Box — Specimen Mount. 

QUESTIONS AND PROBLEMS. 

CHAPTER X. 

THE HOTBED AND WATER SUPPLY. 

Size of the Hotbed — Location of the Hotbed — Construction of the Pit — 
Construction of the Frame — The Sash — Filling the Bed — Soil to Be Placed 
Above the Manure — The Water Supply on the Farm — Health on the Farm — 
A Sanitary Problem for the Farmer — How Disease Is Carried — Bacteria As a 
Source of Contamination — Classes of Water — The Dug Well — Giving Animals 
Impure Water — Inspecting a Well — Testing Water for Organic Matter — Mud 
Holes on the Farm — Test for Chlorides — Test for Sulphates — Test for Lime 
Compounds. 

EXPERIMENTS. 

39. The Weight of Soil Per Cu. Ft. — 40. Judging a Farm. 

AGRICULTURAL APPARATUS AND HOW TO MAKE IT. 

The Hotbed. 

QUESTIONS AND PROBLEMS. 

CHAPTER XL 

STUDIES IN CONCRETE. 

History of Cement — Ancient Cement — The Stability of Natural Cements 
— How Lime Is Made — Quicklime — The Newer Cement — Portland Cement — ■ 
Hydraulic Cement — Manufacture of Cement — Grinding the Raw Product — 
What Concrete Is — Importance of Concrete — What the Schools Can Do, 

EXPERIMENTS. 

4L To Test for Carbonates — 42. Carbon Dioxide. 

AGRICULTURAL APPARATUS AND HOW IT IS MADE. 

Concrete Test Beam — Cement Match Safe. 

LIST OF ARTICLES NEEDED IN THE CONCRETE LABORATORY. 

SUGGESTIVE CONCRETE WORK, 

INDEX. 

vi 



INTRODUCTION. 

There has been much objection to the teaching of Agriculture 
in our District Schools, because teachers claim they do not have 
time to take up an additional subject, when they have so 
many subjects that are already required, and which must be 
taught. However, in recent years Agriculture has been coming 
into its own, and is being taught more and more in the schools. 
Teachers have begun to realize that any subject which holds 
the interest and attention of the pupils is worth while, and that 
any subject which does not hold their attention is not worthy 
of a place in our already crowded school course. 

In order to make Agriculture interesting to the pupil, we 
must base the work upon real practical problems which he can 
understand and appreciate. To do this is no small task, and 
it is a thing which demands a great deal of perseverance and 
initiative, on the part of teachers in such schools. 

The more ideas which an author attempts to incorporate into 
a text book, the more complex his text becomes, and the more 
difficult it is to follow. Therefore, in this text book we have taken 
only a few of the most important conditions and have tried to 
incorporate them in such a manner that they can be used by 
the average district or graded school. We have tried further to 
make the book correct — theoretically and practically. The entire 
text has been written for boys and girls of the country schools, 
with these two things in mind, and the success which attends 
its use presupposes a proper presentation of many minor details, 
which it would be impossible to include under this cover. 

Many teachers get the idea that the subject of Agriculture 
as taught in our public schools is a Vocational Subject. This is 
a mistaken idea, and the teachers should above all bear in mind 
that we are not making better farmers so much as we are making 
better men and women who are farmers. Naturally the teaching 
of Agriculture will make better farmers, and will serve to keep 
more of our boys on the farm. 



FOR THE TEACHER. 

The contents of the following pages give only a small portion 
of the great facts which can be brought to bear upon the sub- 
jects under discussion. Neither space, nor purpose permits more 
elaboration in this book, but the teacher in adjusting its con- 
tents to his immediate needs, can condense or elaborate the topics 
at will. 

The author has attempted to give the most vital facts and to 
present them in a logical order. It remains largely with the 
teacher, however, to demonstrate the value of the following 
pages, and this requires enthusiasm. This text presupposes that 
it will fall into the hands of willing people who have unbounded 
enthusiasm. If such persons use the following lessons as directed, 
supplementing them with their own judgment, much good will 
result. 

It is presumed that the interested teacher desires to do and 
know more than he is expected to teach, and for that reason we 
are furnishing a list of references which may be used for the 
personal benefit of the teacher, or class, or both. These refer- 
ences are valuable merely as an index to more elaborate stores 
of knowledge upon the subjects at hand. They are worth the 
time of both the teacher and student, if it is possible for either 
to study them. 

The experiments and questions at the end of each chapter 
should be worked by the teacher, before they are presented to 
the class. 

There are given pictures and specifications of many handy 
devices, which the pupils may make either at home or at school. 
This work will furnish a method of correlating actual hand work 
wdth the Agricultural Principles. If possible, pupils should be 
encouraged to make the things mentioned,- or, at least, some of 
them. 



Other handy devices may be designed by the pupils and 
teacher at their option. The work given in this phase of the 
subject is merely a beginning, and can be made as elaborate and 
extensive as the teacher desires. The devices given here do not 
demand expensive or uncommon material, or large shops, and 
as many teachers' difficulties as possible have been avoided in 
their designing. 

There will be difficulties peculiar to each community, which 
must be overcome, but it is hoped that the ingenuity of the 
teacher will prevail over all such inconveniences. A course would 
not be a success, unless difficulties were encountered. It will 
not be a success, unless these handicaps are, at least, partially 
mastered. 

One of the greatest aids to a successful course is a good note- 
book properly kept. Properly kept means written in a clear, 
legible hand, in ink, and at all times up to the last assigned lesson. 
Keep an accurate check on all note-books, and do not let students 
get behind in this phase of the work. Nothing destroys interest 
so quickly as getting behind. Have the pupils put the results 
of all experiments and observations in their note-books; also 
drawings of apparatus will help such a book. Link your drawing 
work with Agriculture and both subjects will be improved by 
the union. Do not make note-book work copy work. Copying 
a line here and there from a text book does not make a note- 
book. Have the note-books always ready for inspection, and 
inspection will seldom be necessary. 

One of the greatest aids in note-book work is a camera, if 
it can be had. The use of a camera in a course on soils registers 
accurately many conditions that can not be described in words. 
A few photographs placed in a note-book, showing the things 
under discussion, are an invaluable asset to every student. 



Know just where you are, and what you are going to do 
next, and your laboratory work will he the feature of the course. 
Do not ship the questions. They are the clinchers which hold 
the fabric together. Leave them out and your structure can 
not be well built, pedagogically or scientifically. 

Let your pupils be participants rather than spectators. If 
you make them feel that they have a part to play their respect 
for the work will never lag. 

To learn to know by doing is to see, to know, and to do. 

For a number of very valuable illustrations used in this text, 
the Editor is indebted to the following: Purdue Experiment 
Station, Lafayette, Indiana ; Independent Harvester Co., Piano, 
Illinois ; Cornell Experiment Station, Ithaca, New York ; Inter- 
national Harvester Co., Chicago, Illinois. 



CHAPTER I 

CONDITIONS NECESSARY FOR PLANT LIFE. 

Introduction: A little plant is a wonderful thing. It comes 
as you know, from a little seed which seems as dead as a grain 
of sand. It grows, produces flowers and fruit and becomes a 
thing of both beauty and value. 

Fairy stories are interesting, but they are less interesting 
and certainly not so true as the history of the most humble plant. 
In your story books your characters are able to run about and 
to do great and marvelous things, but in your Agricultural work, 
you will find while plants can not move about they can do many 
things that no man has ever yet been able to do. 

The Conditions Necessary for Plant Growth: Plants grow 
in practically every part of the world, from the torrid regions at 
the equator to the frigid zone of the arctic circle. The condi- 
tions, as far as climate is concerned, are very different. However, 
in a small degree, the same conditions exist at one place as at the 
other. All plants must have moisture, warmth, air, plant food 
and some sort of mechanical support. 

The plants at the equator you know have plenty of warmth. 
Strange as it may seem those at the arctic circle also have warmth, 
although not so much. 

The plants which grow in our own fields have a great deal 
of moisture; also the cactus which grows on the dry and barren 
desert has moisture, although we usually think of it as growing 
without this necessary element. It has adapted itself to such 
a degree that it needs only a little moisture, but moisture it must 
have, for that is one of the conditions necessary for life. 



2 Soils and Fertilizers 

The leaves of most all plants are fortunately blessed with 
air, but the mechanical support of plants differs greatly. We 
usually give the mechanical support of plants small considera- 
tion, but at one time — as you will learn in a later paragraph — 
it was possibly the most important function the soil performed. 

We will take up each condition necessary for plant growth 
and discuss briefly its value. 

Work Required to Produce a Rain: We think very little 
of a rain or shower, as we watch it fall, but did you ever stop 
to think what a great task has been performed when even a 
little rain falls? The rain which falls on an acre of ground during 
a gentle shower weighs thousands and thousands of pounds. 
The farmer says he is very busy in the spring, getting ready to 
till his ground and plant his crops, but the water which Nature 
brings in one day is more than he could haul and put on his 
ground in one whole spring. In some places Nature does 
not bring the water for the crops, and put it on the soil in the 
form of rain. Men have to dig ditches and turn the water from 
streams into them to water the crops. This is called Irrigation, 
and costs the farmers thousands and thousands of dollars. So 
when we see the rain we must remember that by means of sun- 
shine and air Nature is doing a great and good work for the 
farmer by supplying the little plants with water. 

Moisture and Warmth: A little seed dropped into the soil 
without the knowledge of any human being — it was neither 
planted nor sown by mankind, but was distributed by one of 
Nature's agencies. There it lay in the soil all winter; it did not 
change, and appeared to be no different from the soil grains with 
which it mixed. You could not have found it, unless you had 
examined the soil very, very carefully, and you would even then 
have needed a microscope. But let us see what happens when 
Spring comes. 



Conditions Necessary for Plant Life 3 

What Happens to the Seed: When Spring comes, this little 
seed, lying so quietly in the soil, becomes warm, and begins to 
take up the moisture. Both of these conditions — moisture and 
heat — come with the Spring. The seed requires heat before it 
will absorb moisture, and it requires moisture as soon as it becomes 
warm. As the seed becomes warm it drinks very greedily. 

The soil is so warm and comfortable in the Spring after a 
long and cold winter that the seed drinks very much, and since it 
can not stretch the seed covering, it bursts. This accident, how- 
ever, is not so very unfortunate, for although it destroys the seed 
it liberates the little plant which has been locked up, so it at once 
begins to grow. We see now that warmth and water have un- 
locked the door which kept the little plant imprisoned. Before 
the little plant can reach the sunshine, or can be seen by man, 
it must grow to a much larger plant than it is at this time. Of 
course, it can not grow without food, and being so small, it is 
unable to get food for itself. 

Where the Little Plant Gets Food: In searching for food 
this infant plant finds that the mother plant has filled its cradle 
home entirely full of the best food imaginable. The parent has 
furnished the food, so that all the plant has to do is to eat and 
grow. While it is growing and living on the food already fur- 
nished, it begins to send out little rootlets and a little stem with 
small leaves on it. The stem and leaves push upwards towards 
the sunlight while the roots seek to bury themselves deeper and 
deeper in the warm moist soil in search of water and food. 

It seems that a plant would not send its leaves toward the 
light and the roots into the ground if the seed were planted up 
side down. However, the plant, as we have said, is a wonderful 
thing, and no difference which way we turn the seed, the little 
plant will push its leaves and stem upward towards the light and 
the roots downward into the ground. This is shown in Fig. 1. 



r^ 



4 Soils and Fertilizers 

Use of the Parts of a Plant: Not only does the little plant 
send each of its parts on its own special way, but it sends each to 
do certain things for the life of the plant. The little plant sends 
its leaves towards the sun to get light, heat and air, for air is 
usually present where there is plenty of light. It sends the little 

roots into the ground 
to get food and 
water, and to give 
the plant support, so 
that it can stand up 
strong and straight. 

The plant must 
have all of these con- 
ditions ■ — heat, light, 
water, air and me- 
chanical support — to 
grow and live, so it 
has good reason for 
developing roots and 
leaves while it is liv- 
ing on the food pro- 
vided by the mother. 
When this food is 
gone, it will have to 
live upon its own resources and to do this it will have to have the 
roots and leaves; the roots to gather food and water; and the 
leaves to gather air and to manufacture food, by the aid of 
sunlight. 




viy 




FIG. 1. 



The above shows that regardless of the position in 
which a plant is placed, its roots will grow down- 
ward and its stem and leaves upward. 



Air in Pelation to Plant Life: It seems strange that leaves 
are put forth to obtain food from the air, yet that is what they do. 
As a man could not live without lungs, so a plant could not live 
without leaves. The leaves breathe just as animals breathe, but 
thej^ do not use the same foods from the air that animals do. The 



Conditions Necessary for Plant Life 



leaves take carbon out of air in the form of carbon dioxide, and 
build it into their plant body. 

Carbon: Carbon in the air is a gas and is found united with 
oxygen. This carbon and oxygen gas, called carbon dioxide, is 
taken into the plant through the leaves. The leaves use the 
carbon and throw off the oxygen. 

The carbon is built into the plant and makes about one-half 
of the dry or woody portion of the plant. A good example of 
the carbon found in plants is coal. Coal is almost pure carbon 
which is left when plants die. When this coal is burned most 
of it, in the form of gas, passes into the air from whence it came. 

Although this seems impossible, with a little study you can 
see that carbon as gas goes into a plant and is formed into a 
solid, which can be burned as wood or coal when the plant dies 
and becomes dry. When burned the carbon in the plant goes 
back into the air as carbon dioxide gas, and is again ready to be 
used by a growing 
plant. 

Do not forget 
the fact, that 
through all of its 
changes, none of the 
carbon is really de- 
stroyed. From the 
time it enters the 
plant until it escapes 
there is no loss and 
no change except in 
its form. Any sub- 
stance may be chang- 
ed but no substance can ever be destroyed. 

Relationship Between Plants and Animals: Another valu- 
able thing that we should know is that while plant leaves absorb 




FIG. 2. 
The principal part of tiiis coal, the carbon, was taken 
from the air by the growing- plant, and will be re- 
turned to the air when the coal is burned. 



6 uoils and Fertilisers 

carbon dioxide gas (carbon and oxygen mixed) and throw off 

oxygen, animals breathe oxygen and throw off carbon dioxide. 

Thus plants throw off a gas which animals use, while animals 

give off the proper gas for plants. 

Don't you think that Nature has been very wise in covering 

the earth with both plants and animals ? 

Did you ever regard plants as your friends, in the respect 

that they are working all of the time to furnish you not only 

substances to eat but air to breathe? 

Also the air carries the great amount of water which falls 

upon the soil and feeds the plants. Water always exists as a 

part of the atmosphere. Water may be seen passing into the 

atmosphere by noticing the spout of a tea-kettle while the water 

is boiling. 

The Amount of a Plant That Comes From the Air: When 

we sum up all the parts of a plant that come from the air, we 

find that about 97% of a plant has existed at some time as air. 

The picture below shows you how much this amount really is. 

The white corner shows what part 
of the plant comes from the soil 
particles. The large black portion 
of the square shows the amount 
that comes from the air. 

The air is a very complex and 
interesting substance, and contains 
many gases each of which plays its 
important part in the life processes 
of plants and animals. To fully 
understand the air and the part it 
^jQ 3 plays in Agriculture, we would be 

^"pSl^"^' ""' "''"""^' "'^"'' "'" compelled to study separately each 

of the gases, of which it is composed. 

It is like the large black locomotive; very interesting, but to 
be fully understood, so that we may appreciate it, each part must 




Conditions Necessary for Plant Life 7 

be studied so that we may see what will happen when any one 
part is disturbed. 

Water in the Air: If we were to separate the atmosphere 
into its various parts we would find water vapor to be one of the 
principal compounds which is present. This water is obtained by 
the roots of the plants after it has fallen as rain. Of the sub- 
stances existing in the air only two are used directly by the plant. 
One is Carbon Dioxide, which is Carbon and Oxygen, and the 
other is Nitrogen. We will give special attention to these when 
we study Plant Foods. 





SOLIDS 



FIG. 4. 
The percentage of water in a tomato is larger than in milk. 

Water in Relation to Plant Life: Although the water which 
a plant uses comes from the soil, it is made up of two gases and 
was, therefore, a part of the atmosphere. These gases which 
make water are Hydrogen and Oxygen. They unite in the form 
of water, and are taken into the plant in this united form. 

Water as a Food: Plants use water as a food just the same 
as animals do. They build water into their cells until finally 



8 Soils and Fertilizers 

the largest part of the plant is water; in fact, over seven-tenths 
of the average growing plant is water. Think of cutting a 
hundred pounds of hay to find that you had seventy or more 
pounds of water, the same as you get from the well. 

There is more water in a large ripe tomato than there is in an 
equal weight of milk, yet we drink the milk and eat the tomato. 
The solid material is in solution in the milk, while in the tomato 
it forms a network of peeling and fibre, which holds the mass 
in a solid form. The preceding picture shows you the percentage 
of water in a ripe tomato and in a can of milk. 

Water as the Blood of the Plant: Not only is water used 
as food for the plant, but it is the thing that carries all of the 
other foods to the plant. It performs the same tasks for the 
plants that our blood performs for us. Since plants can not eat 
solid food, the water must dissolve the food from the soil and take 
this food with it into the plant so that the plant can live. Since 
each drop of water will carry only a very little food, a great deal 
of water must pass through the plant to furnish all of the food 
that the plant needs. From three to five hundred pounds of 
water must pass through the plant to produce one pound of 
plant. This gives an idea what a large amount of water is re- 
quired to produce even an ordinary crop. Since a plant needs 
so much water, and since it does most of its growing during the 
warm summer months, when very little rain is falling, we can 
at once see that the problem of how to keep the water that falls 
as rain on the soil is as great as any problem in all Agriculture. 

How Water Gets Into the Plant: Since water is found in 
the air we sometimes think that it gets into the plants through 
the leaves, but this is not correct. All water must enter the plant 
through its little roots. If you will carefully sprout some kernels 
of corn, according to an experiment at the close of another chap- 
ter, you will be able to see the little roots called root hairs which 
absorb the water from the soil. These little root hairs are the 



Conditions Necessary for Plant Life 9 

mouths of the plant and they are at work all of the time taking 
the water that is brought to them. 

Plants Resemble Animals: We find that a plant is very 
much like an animal in many respects. It has leaves for lungs 
and takes food out of the air by breathing just as animals do. 
A plant must have this air just as an animal must. 

A plant has water for blood and it serves this purpose for 
the plant just as well as the blood of an animal serves the animal. 

A plant has roots for a mouth, and they are busy all of the 
time getting the food for the whole plant. The plant can not 
run about as a boy can to hunt the food that he likes. It must 
take the food that is brought to it and do the best that it can. 
Now, if the food is not in the soil the water can not dissolve it 
and take it to the plant, therefore the plant will starve. In order 
that we may see to it that the proper foods are in the soil and 
where the plants can get them, we must know what plant foods 
are necessary. 

Plant Foods: Although the air is coiftposed of several sub- 
stances we have found that there are possibly only two of these 
substances that the plant can take directly into its body from 
the air. In a like manner, although there are many substances 
in the soil, there are only a very few that are necessary to the 
plant. At present there are ten plant food substances found in 
the soil, all of which are thought to be necessary for the growth 
of plants. Of these ten, only four are of great interest to us, 
for there is so much of each of the others in the soil, that there 
is no need for us to wonder about them. 

The four most important elements that are oft-times wanting 
in the soil are: Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potash, and Lime. We 
will take up each one of these substances under the chapter on 
fertilizers, for. if one of these substances is absent in the soil, 



10 



Soils and Fertilizers 



plants cannot grow at all. It is by placing on the soil the plant 
foods that are deficient that we hope to increase our crops in the 
future. 

Elements and Compounds: We have referred to Nitrogen, 
Phosphorus, Potash, etc., as plant food elements, but before we 
can understand exactly what they are, we must know as definitely 
as we can what an element is. 

All substances are divided into two classes. They are either 
classed as elements or as compounds. When an object is com- 
posed of only one kind of substance it is said to be an element. 

There are only a few 
elements in existence, 
but they are combin- 
ed in a great number 
of ways to make 
compounds. 

Any object which 

is composed of more 

than one kind of 

substance is called a 

Fj^j 5 compound. For ex- 

A compound may always be divided into two or more amT)lp Watcr whilp 

apparently an ele- 
ment is in reality a compound. It is not an element because it is 
composed of two different substances. When we divide water 
into the two substances Hydrogen and Oxygen, of which it is 
composed, we cannot divide it further. Neither the Hydrogen 
nor the Oxygen will divide into other substances, so we call them 
elements. 






Compound 



Dements 



Thus the two simple elements Hydrogen and Oxygen when 
put together form a compound called water. The complete 
classification of elements and compounds is very diflBcult and 



Conditions Necessary for Plant Life H 

belongs to the study of Chemistry. We cannot discuss the sub- 
ject more fully in this chapter. See Fig. 5. 

Organic and Mineral Substances: It is rather difficult to get 
a clear understanding of the difference between organic and 
mineral substances, but a simple and yet sufficiently accurate way 
of expressing it is to say that all substances which contain car- 
bon are called organic substances, while all of those which do not 
contain carbon are called mineral substances. By a simple experi- 
ment we can easily divide a plant into these two classes. See 
Experiment No. 5. 

Mechanical Support: A long time ago the earth was covered 
with water, and plants were compelled to live entirely in water. 




. „ . FIG. 6. 

A, urganic and mineral substance; B, mineral substance alone, after burning- "A," 

which is a pile of straw. 

They floated around getting sunshine, moisture and air in abund- 
ance. We imagine that it was then very pleasant for plants, for 
they could move from place to place. Finally some plants drifted 
into shallow water and the bottom of the plants became covered 
with mud. At that time water held the plants up and the mud 
at the botton^ only kept them from drifting away. Gradually 



12 



Soils and Fertilizers 



however, the water left parts of the earth, and the plants that 
were growing there had to depend on the soil both to feed them 
and to hold them up. So now while the soil is a place where the 
plants can get food, it is probable that its first use was merely 
to hold or support the plants. Fig. 7 shows a plant that gets 
all of its food from the air. It is merely tied to the tree. 




FIG. 7. 
A plant that requires no soil. 

EXPERIMENT NO. 1. 

The Effect of Heat Upon Plant Growth. 

Obtain two flower pots, or two tin cans, and plant 5 or 6 large healthy 
seeds in each. Either corn or beans will be good seeds to plant. Be sure 
to "plant them all the same depth so that they will have an even chance to 



Conditions Necessary for Plant Life 



13 



grow. Place one pot of seeds in a warm place and the other in a very cool 
place. Water both alike^ and examine at the end of a week. What does 
this show you? Dig up the seeds that were in the cold soil. What has hap- 
pened to them.^ What happens when a farmer plants his corn before the 
ground is warm.^ Examine the seeds that were planted in the warm soil. 
What has become of them? What does this show you about the value of 
planting large seeds? 

Below you will find a picture showing how the seeds will be apt to appear. 
Make a drawing in your note book to show the results of your experiment. 

EXPERIMENT NO. 2. 

The Effect of Light Upon Plant Growth. 

If you have no flower pots for this ex- 
periment, bring two tin cans from home 
and with a nail, punch a few holes in the 
bottom of each. 

The cans may not look as nice, but 
they will work just as well as flower potSo 

You could also use small boxes, such 
rs chalk boxes, if you care to do so. Start 
some beans to growing in each of the two 
receptacles. After they are up nicely, that 
is, above ground three or four days, cover 
one pot with something that will keep out 
as much of the light as possible. You can 
easily shut out the light by putting a 
large can or light tight box over the plant. 
At the end of a week remove the covering 
and compare the plants. Explain what 
happens when a plant does not get suf- 
ficient light. 

Write the results of the experiment in 
your note book. 






FIG. 8. 



Seeds kept moist 
"Without enough 
heat on the left. 
Notice that 
they have de- 
cayed. 



The seeds on the 
right have pro- 
duced plants. 
The plants have' 
eaten the food, 
leaving only a 
seed covering. 



14 Soils and Fertilizers 

EXPERIMENT NO. 3. 

The Effect of Moisture Upon Plant Growth. 

Plant some seeds in dry soil^ some in the same kind of soil kept moist, and 
some in the same kind kept very wet. Examine often and see what eifeet 
moisture has on the growth of plants. What effect does too much moisture 
have on the growth of plants.^ On a farm how may we get rid of any over 
supply of moisture.^ Write in your note book the results of this experiment. 

EXPERIMENT NO. 4. 
To Shorv That There Is Air in the Soil. 

You would be surprised to know how much air space there is in the soil 
a foot deep on an acre of ground. You can get an idea of the amount of 
space in a soil which is occupied by the air by taking a very little dry soil, and 
putting water in the place of air. 

To do this, take two glass vessels of the same size, such as beakers. Fill 
one beaker one-half full of clay soil, and jar slightly to settle it. Fill the 
other beaker to the same height with water. Pour the water from the beakei 
into the soil, and let stand until all of the soil is wet. Note the height to which 
the soil and water come in the beaker. 

The diiference between the height of the soil and water combined, and 
the sum of their heights, when separate, is the amount of air contained by the 
soil. 

For example: Suppose one beaker contained two inches of water, and 
the other two inches of soil, and when poured together, their combined height 
was three inches. Four inches the sum of the height of the water and soil 
minus three inches, their height when combined, leaves one inch, the amount 
of the soil occupied by air spaces. The amount of air spaces divided by the 
total amount of soil gives the percentage of the soil that is composed of air 
spaces. In this case, one divided by two equals fifty one-hundredths ; the per 
cent, of the soil which was air space. 

Write the results of this experiment in your note book. 

Repeat this experiment using different kinds of soils. 

Compare the air spaces in each. 

Write a discussion, telling what you have found out about air spaces in 
coarse and fine soils. 



Conditions Necessary for Plant Life 15 

EXPERIMENT NO. 5. 

Mineral Substance and Organic Substance. 

Let us take a potato and wash it clean. Weigh it and then burn it in an 
oven until all that will burn has been removed. This will require a very high 
temperature to burn out all of the carbon. 

All that has been removed by the burning came from the air and is called 
organic substance. This includes the water, for it came originally from the air. 

Weigh that which remains. It is called plant ash; it came from the soil. 
It is also called mineral substance. Can you figure what part of the potato 
came from the soil? What part came from the air.f" 



o o 

a 
o 


o 

O 8 O 
O 


O 
O 


i 
1 

1 a' H 


1 <| r| 


• 1 

• l_ 



Fij.l, Window Box. 



to <o 

J L 



■ 8"— ^ i4A 

ri-n 




1? 



iii 



T 



ikm 






u^m 



Fi'q.S, Line Winder* 



D c 



3 c 



3 C 



3 C 




Fi^.i, Flower Pot bUnd 



PLATE 2. 

16 



Conditions Necessary for Plant Life 17 

AGRICULTURAL APPARATUS AND HOW IT IS MADE. 

Window Box. 

Window boxes are very handy in the school room^ and may be so made 
that they can be taken out of doors when spring comes. Almost any kind of 
wood can be used in making your box. Figure 1 of plate 2 on the opposite 
page gives a complete working drawing of such a box. 

The box can vary in size, but four inches deep and eight inches wide 
makes a very good size. The box should be about the length of the apron 
board under the window. The box may be fastened to the window by screws 
extending into the casing, or it may be placed upon brackets. If placed upon 
brackets, the pupils may make the brackets out of wood. Cast iron brackets 
could be purchased if desired. They give your box a more finished appearance. 
Small holes should be made in the bottom of the box to let out surplus water. 
There should be several holes at various places in the box. One-eighth inch 
holes are large enough for this. It would be well to have each student make 
out a bill of lumber and a drawing of this article before beginning to work. Six 
penny or eight penny nails should be used to fasten the box together, and 2-inch 
screws to fasten it to the window casing. In painting this box, a coat of dark 
green paint will make it look very attractive. Paint will not only make your 
work look attractive, but it will preserve it. The paint stops up the openings 
or pores in the wood and this keeps out air and moisture. This almost entirely 
stops decay. Since the inside of your box will be moist most of the time, you 
should paint it inside as well as outside. It is advisable to use at least two 
coats of paint on any wood material which is to be exposed to air and moisture. 

Florver Pot Stand. 
If you have flower pots in which to grow your plants, or if you use tin 
cans, you will have difficulty in finding places where they will all have equal 
chances at light and heat. Also, if you have many pots of plants at the same 
time, and you should have, you will be at a loss to know where to put all of 
them. A flower pot stand will solve this difficulty, besides the fact that it will 
be very attractive. Figure 4 of plate 2 will give you a complete idea of how 
to make this stand. The dimensions may be altered to suit the person making 
the stand. If made smaller than the dimensions given the three supports may 
be made from one-inch material instead of two-inch, as shown. 

When completed, finish with one or two coats of dark red or green paint, 
and you will have a very nice and handy arrangement for your plant experi- 
ments. 



18 Soils and Fertilizers 

Plant Label. 
In order that you may know what is planted in each pot and who is per- 
forming the experiment^ it is necessary that you have some form of a plant label. 
The one shown in Plate 2, Figure 2, is very desirable and can be made with 
very little trouble. You will find all dimensions given on the drawing. Use 
any kind of soft wood^ and when completed give it one or two coats of paint, 
both to preserve it and to add to its appearance. 

QUESTIONS AND PROBLEMS. 

1. A quart of water weighs two pounds. What is the weight of thirty-one 

and one-half gallons .'' ■ 

2. If light travels at the rate of 18 6^,000 miles per second, how far will it 

travel in one minute.^ 

3. It requires five hundred pounds of water to produce one pound of plant. 

How many gallons does it require? 

4. If two leaves on a tree give off eight ounces of water in a day, how many 

leaves will a plant require to throw oif six hundred pounds in a day.? 

5. How many cubic inches of water are there on a square yard of soil if the 

water is two inches deep? 

6. If three hundred bushels of tomatoes are grown on an acre, and they are 

nine-tenths water, how much water is there in the ripened fruit? 

7. How many square feet in one square yard? In one acre? 

8. If a board is one inch thick, twelve inches wide and six feet long, how 

much would it be worth at 8c per board foot? (A board foot means one 
foot square, one inch thick.) 

9. It requires the following material for your window box: 

1 pc. 1 in. thick, 6 in. wide and 14 ft. long at. . . . 8c per board foot 

1 pc. 1 in. thick, 10 in. wide and 6 ft. long at. . . . 8c per board foot 

1 pound 8d nails at 5c per pound 

How much will the material cost for your box ? 

10. At the end of seven days your corn plants kept where it was cold were 
one-half inch tall. Those kept where it was warm were four inches 
tall. How much more did the warm plants grow than the cold ones per 
day? At the above rate, how tall would the warm plants be at the end 
of 110 days? How tall would the cold plants be? 



Conditions Necessary for Plant Life 19 

11. If tlie temperature of the cold plants was kept at 52° and the warm. ones 

at 70°, what was the difference in temperature? 

12. If eighteen degrees difference in temperature makes two feet difference 

in the height of a stalk of corn during the growing season, how many 
inches will one degree affect the height? 

Read all of the following references obtainable and any others at hand. 
Do field experiments and as much supplementary laboratory work as possible. 
Every community has its peculiar soil conditions which should be studied. 

REFERENCES. 

Treating Soil in the Laboratory and Field, State College of Agriculture, 
Ames, Iowa. 

Soil Conservation; United States Dept. of Agriculture. Farmers' Bulletin 
t06. 

39 Experiments in Soils; Published by Chas. L. Quear, Muncie, Indiana. 

Warren's Elements of Agriculture ; Published by Orange Judd Co. 

First Principles of Soil Fertility; Published by Orange Judd Co. 



CHAPTER II 

HOW SOILS ARE FORMED. 

What Soil Is: Soil is that part of the earth's surface which 
can be tilled and in which plants can grow. We sometimes think 
of soil as being composed of fine rock particles and nothing more. 
This is a wrong idea for a soil is not only composed of rock 
particles, but it contains organic matter, moisture, and air. It 
must contain all of these things in order that plants may grow. 
That part of the earth upon which plants cannot grow should 
not be called soil. 

Mineral Matter: Mineral matter is that part of the soil 
which is made up of rock particles. These rock particles vary 
in size from very large boulders, to dust so fine that it feels per- 
fectly smooth to the sense of touch. As a usual rule the finer 
the mineral particles of a soil are divided, the more easily they 
are soluble and the better soil they make. 

Organic Blatter: The death and decay of plants and animals 
furnish most of the organic matter. Organic matter is a very 
complex substance and will be given special attention in a chap- 
ter on fertilizers. 

Soil Moisture: Although there is always moistu±'e present 
in the air in the form of vapor, most plants get their water sup- 
ply from the soil. So until water vapor in the air condenses, 
and falls as water, thus moistening the ground, we cannot have 
true soil. 

Soil Air: All plants must have air to live and this air must 
be present in the ground as well as above it. No plant roots can 
remain alive where there is no air to be had. 

20 



How Soils Are Formed 



21 



. Necessary Soil Conditions: You have already learned that 
in order for plants to grow, the mineral matter and the organic 
matter in the soil must be soluble in water. Also, soil cannot 
well be tilled unless the rock particles are finely divided. There 
are several agencies that are at work all of the time breaking 
down the soil materials, and changing them so that they may 
be used as food by plants. 

How Soils Are Formed: At one time the earth was not cov- 
ered with the fine layer of soil which we find now. It was heaped 
with great boulders and 
masses of rock, but as years 
passed on, the water, air, 
heat and cold crumbled the 
rocks into fine particles, so 
that the roots of plants were 
able to gain a foothold. 
Then the roots of plants to- 
gether with animals that 
live under the ground, be- 
gan to help break these 
small particles of rock into smaller and smaller particles. These 
plants and animals in the course of time died and their decayed 
bodies were added to the finely divided rock particles, until now 
we have a thick covering of soil over almost the entire surface of 
the earth. This mixture of mineral and organic matter holds 
moisture and air, so plants are able to find in it all of the soil con- 
ditions necessary for life. 

The forces which have made this valuable layer of soil are 
at work all of the time breaking down rock particles into soil. 
If you will examine some large rocks out in the fields, you can 
find where one or more of these agencies is at work even now 
breaking down the rock particles into smaller and smaller bits, 
so that at last they can be dissolved by water and taken into a 
plant as food. 




FIG. 9. 
HoAv soil is formed. 



22 Soils and Fertilisers 

The air also performs such an important part in this never 
ending work that we must not fail to think of it. 

Air As An Agent of Soil Formation: Small particles of 
soil are caught up by the wind and are ground against other 
objects until they become very fine. You can see what the wind 
is doing in forming soils if you will look on top of the snow 
along the side of a field that has been plowed in the fall, and 
across which the wind has been blowing. You will find here 
great quantities of soil that have been ground up and carried 
oiF of the field by the wind. 

Chemical Action of Air: There is also a greater action of 
the air which is called chemical action. In a chemical action 
certain elements of the air unite with substances in the soil to 
decompose them. Thus the air is constantly at work changing 
both mineral and organic substances. As soon as life is gone 
from any of nature's creatures, whether they are animals or 
plants, the air begins changing their lifeless bodies back into soil 
elements to furnish food for another generation of plants. We 
are all familiar with this process of decay for anywhere that we 
look about us we can see bits of fruit, vegetables, meat and other 
substances beginning to rot. Isn't this a wonderful plan which 
nature has of saving every particle of her building material, 
and using the air, which is always present, to change the things 
which we consider worthless back into valuable elements for her 
great storehouse, the soil. 

This is certainly a beautiful way to think of the decomposition 
which is brought about by the air. The common expression is to 
say that things rot. A chemist would call this process oxidation. 

Oxidation: Oxidation is slow combustion and this is what 
happens to substances exposed to the air. They burn very slowly, 
but just as truly as the wood burns in the stove. A stick of wood 
that is left lying out of doors for a long time disappears, and we 



How Soils Are Formed 



23 



say that it has rotted. In fact it has decomposed by slow oxida- 
tion. Another good example of oxidation is the rusting of an iron 
pipe when exposed to the air. The red rust which forms is very 
different from the iron itself and contains oxygen from the at- 
mosphere. If we keep the air away from the pipe by painting it, 
or by covering it with grease, no rust will form. This goes to 
show you that it is the air that is destroying the pipe. In view of 
this fact how will you keep air from rusting the plow when not in 
use ? How would you prevent air from rotting a house ? 




FIG. 10. 

The results of weathering upon stone. 



Temperature As An Agent of Soil Formation: On a warm 
and sunny day the heat of the atmosphere warms the soil and 
causes it to expand. Some of the particles that go to make up a 
rock do not expand as rapidly as others, so the rock breaks, and 
pieces scale- off of its surface. During the night the soil becomes 
cold and contracts, again breaking the rock particles into smaller 
and smaller parts. This action is going on all of the time and is 
very important in the formation of soils. 



24 Soils and Fertilizers 

Water As An Agent of Soil Formation: Water and tem- 
perature combined is a powerful agent in soil formation. The 
water gets into cracks in the rocks and freezes. When it freezes 
it bursts apart the little particles of rock. Solid rocks are in this 
manner broken to pieces. You can understand how freezing 
water will burst a rock, if you have ever noticed what happens 
when water freezes in a bottle or a pitcher. The rock particles 
are forced apart in the same manner that the pitcher is broken. 
Water is also very active in dissolving rocks. Indeed, if water 
did not dissolve rocks the plants would never obtain mineral 
food. Water dissolves some rocks more rapidly than others. 
Under certain conditions limestone, for example, is dissolved by 
water. If you will look inside of the tea-kettle you will find a 
deposit of limestone which has been dissolved by the water and 
left in the tea-kettle when the water evaporated. When you get 
home examine the tea-kettle to see if it contains lime. 

Plants As An Agent of Soil Formation: Plants aid in the 
formation of soil in three ways. 

1. They take substances from the air and build them into 
their bodies. When the plants die, this substance goes into the 
soil. Carbon is an example of an element which thus gets into 
the soil. 

2. The roots grow in crevices between the rock particles and 
force them apart. The picture below shows the force exerted by 
a tree which lifted and broke a concrete walk. (Fig. 11.) See if 
you can find where a little root of a climbing plant has forced its 
way between the brick of a wall or building. 

3. Plants give off acid which dissolves rock. They give off 
this acid both while they are living and when they die. You can 
easily see where the acid given off by a growing plant has eaten 
by pulling the moss off a rock. See Experiment No. 6. 

Animals As An Agent of Soil Formation: Burrowing ani- 
mals, such as prairie dogs, moles, earthworms and insects, dig in 



How Soils Are Formed 



25 



the soil and break it into finer and finer particles. Indeed the 
earthworm eats the soil, and in passing through its body, the soil 
particles become very finely divided. Also soil is more open 
where burrowing animals are numerous. This allows water and 
air to pass through the soil and dissolve it freely. The soil is 
thus better fitted to supply plant life. 

Cultivation As An Agent of Soil Formation: We oft-times 
think of cultivation as a powerful agent in soil formation. How- 
ever, cultivation plays only a very small part in making soils. 
In order to understand the difference between w^hat cultivation, 
and the other agencies do towards forming soil, we w^ill have to 
know the difi'erence between texture and structure of soils. 




FIG. 11. 
Tree breaking a concrete walk. 



Texture and Structure: In order that you may thoroughly 
understand the meaning of soil structure and soil texture you 
must keep in mind the fact that all soil is composed of tiny par- 
ticles, w^hich we usually call soil grains. In difi'erent soils the 
size of these soil grains varies greatly, some soils having extremely 
fine grains while other soils are composed of much coarser grains. 
If the soil grains are coarse we say the soil has a coarse texture. 
Sandy soil is a good example of a coarse textured soil. If the soil 
grains are very, very small, we say that this particular soil is fine 
in texture. Clay is a good example of a fine textured soil. 



26 Soils and Fertilizers 

Soil structure refers not to the size of soil grains, but to their 
form of arrangement. Thus we may say that a soil is loose, 
packed, or cloddy in its structure without considering at all 
whether its texture is fine or coarse. Cultivation may break up 
the clods and change the way in which the tiny soil grains are 
bound together, thus changing the structure, but not affecting 
the size of the soil grains, therefore not affecting the texture. 

To illustrate, a box of shelled popcorn might be considered of 
fine texture because of its small grains, while a box of shelled dent 
corn would be considered coarse in texture. If you should pour 
either box of corn into a basket or different shaped box you would 
change the structure. The size of the grains, however, would 
remain the same, so you see the texture would not be affected. 

Cultivation which deals only with structure, cannot therefore, 
be said to be a direct agent of soil formation. However, culti- 
vation helps the other agencies to work and is called an Indirect 
Agent of Soil Formation. 



28 



Soils and Fertilizers 



EXPERIMENT NO. 6. 

To Show That the Roots of a Plant Give Off Acid. 

Take a piece of smooth stone, such as marble^, or if such a stone is not to 
be had, pick up a smooth stone along the roadside. Germinate (sprout) a 
kernel of corn in a pot of clean sand, and as soon as it is above the ground 
dig it up carefulljr, so as not to injure the little roots. Lay the roots of this 
plant against the smooth side of the stone and cover them vs^ith soil. Let the 
plant grow for a week or ten days. Remove the rock and see if you can trace 
the outline of the roots on the rock. What does the outline of the roots show 
you.? 

NOTE : It is well to place the rock at an angle directly underneath the 
roots so that they cannot grow downward without following its surface. See 
Fig. 12. 

EXPERIMENT NO. 7. 

To Determine How a Soil Becomes Acid. 

If we once put lime enough on the soil to make it sweet (free from acid), 
there seems to be no reason why it should not remain so forever. In other 
words, we might think that a soil once made sweet with any substance should 
remain that way indefinitely. However, we find this is jiot the case. In seek- 
ing to find an explanation for this, 
we have decided that the roots of 
plants give off an acid. To prove 
this the following experiment has 
been devised. 




Showing 
acid. 



laundry. 



FIG. 12. 
that the roots of a plant give off 



In making tests to detect the 
presence of acids we use a sub- 
stance called litmus. It has a 
very dark blue color, and looks 
much like indigo, or the bluing 
which you have seen used in the 
Whenever even a small amount of acid comes in contact with litmus 
the solution turns pink or red in color. It is therefore used in all kinds of tests 
to find whether or not acid is present. Sometimes paper is soaked in litmus solu- 
tion, producing what is known as litmus paper. It is used for the same purpose 
of making acid tests. 

Obtain a small amount of gelatine that has no flavor. Dissolve it in a 
small quantity of boiling water. Color this while it is hot with blue litmus 



How Soils Are Formed 29 

solution. Do not get the gelatine too deep a blue color. Use only enough 
litmus to give a definite tinge. 

Carefully dig up a healthy growing plant which is four or five days old — 
that is^ one which has been above the ground four or five days. Be careful 
not to injure the roots of the little plant, for you want it to continue growing. 
A corn plant would be a very excellent plant to use for this experiment. Insert 
the roots of the plant into a small vessel, such as a test tube, and when the 
gelatine is rather cool, but not yet solidified, pour it around the roots of the 
plant as if it were soil; in other words, you will have a plant growing in a 
test tube with gelatine as a substitute for soil. 

Note the plant and the gelatine every half day for several days, or until 
the plant dies. What changes do you note in the color of the gelatine.? If 
the gelatine changes from the blue color to a pink or red color, you will know 
that acid has been given off by the growing plant. In the small plant which 
you have used there are only a few roots, and only a little acid will be given 
off at best, so you will have to observe very carefully any changes that may 
take place. In a large plant there are thousands of rootlets, and consequently 
much more acid would be given off. 

Write the results of this experiment in your note-book. 

Make a drawing to show your experiment. 

EXPERIMENT NO. 8. 

Rain Water and Soil Water. 

Take about one-half pint of clean water from the well and evaporate it 
in a clean white dish or a beaker. In another similar vessel evaporate some 
water which you have caught as rain. It is best to catch this water directly 
into a pan or pail. If it runs from a roof it will contain impurities and will 
not do. Use the same amount of this water as you did of the well water. Do 
you find anything left when the well or soil water disappears? Will it burn.? 
What kind of matter is it? Where did it come from? Did you find anything 
remaining from the rain water? Why? 

EXPERIMENT NO. 9. 

To Show That Water Dissolves Mineral Matter from Soil. 

If we take rain water before it touches the earth, a roof or anything 
unclean, it will contain no mineral matter, except that which is collected as dust. 



.>0 



Soils and Fertilisers 



Water which has soaked into the ground always contains more or less 
mineral matter. We know that plants must have mineral matter to live and 
thrive, so by growing plants in both kinds of water we can tell which contains 
the more mineral plant food. 

Take a dozen or more kernels of wheat and plant them. After they have 
grown an inch or so above the surface carefully dig them up. Take two 
small pieces of screen wire and carefully push the roots of five plants through 
each piece of wire. Put one piece of wire in each kind of water (one in clean 
pure rain water and the other in water which has come from a well), so that 
the water just covers the kernels and the roots. Keep the amount of water in 
the pans as near the same height as you can, and note the plants at the close 
of the week. What difference do you find.? If there is no apparent difference* 
and both samples are growing, leave alone until results appear. What did the 
soil water have which the rain water did not have.? Why do we call water 
the blood of the plant? See Fig. 13. 




A B 

FIG. 13. 
(A) Plants grown in soil water; (B) plants grown in rain water. 



EXPERIMENT NO. 

Oxidation. 



10. 



Take two pieces of bright tin, or two pieces of iron and file them bright. 
(Any scrap of iron such as a piece of a hinge, an iron pipe, an old knife- 
blade or even a nail will do.) Coat one piece with vaseline or oil and leave 
the other just as it is. Expose the two alike to the outdoor air for a few 
days. Examine and note the changes. What is the change in the one piece 
called? What caused it? Why do people paint houses and machinery? 



O O Q'O-^- 



•] 






1 



F19. 1, Percolohon 1^q«U. 



20 




Wire Screen. 



r~i 







.J 
■1 



IJ 



Fig. 2, 5oil Screen- 



PLATE 4. 

31 



32 Soils and Fertilizers 

AGRICULTURAL APPARATUS AND HOW IT IS MADE. 

Percolation Rack. 

A rack for percolation bottles is a very desirable piece of apparatus to 
make. It is very useful in the study of soils and also presents some good 
Manual Training principles. A design is furnished in Fig. 14 which is very 
good, but the student can change his design to suit himself. Any kind of 
wood may be used for this rack, but it is better for the young student to use 
soft wood. One-half inch basswood is excellent. The finish may be of any 
nature; it may be painted, or stained and varnished, at the option of the 
student. Plate 4 gives dimensions and a complete design of a very serviceable 
percolation rack. 




FIG. 14. 
Percolation rack in use. 

Percolation Bottles. 
Lamp chimneys make excellent percolation tubes, but they are expensive 
and cannot always be had. Bottles may be used just as well, as they can 
usually be had for the asking. The large, long-necked round bottles of the 
beer bottle type are best. Before a bottle can be used as a percolation bottle 
it must have the bottom removed. The best way that this can be done is to 
tie a string which has been soaked in kerosene or turpentine around the bottle 
near the bottom and set it on fire. When the string has burned immerse the 
bottle suddenly in cold water. When tapped gently the bottom will usually 
break off smoothly. Now, plug the mouth of the bottle with cotton, or cover 
it with cheese-cloth and the bottle is ready for use. 



How Soils Are Formed 



33 



Flower Pot. 
In your experiments you oft-times have need for a flower pot. Tin cans 
with holes in the bottom may be substituted and will work just as well. How- 
ever, they do not present a very neat appearance as a rule. You can make 
a very nice flower pot out of paper which will be serviceable for some time. 
Take heavy building paper, or any heavy tough paper, and lay out the design 
for the flower pot as shown in Plate 3. Cut out your design and fold together. 
Cut all of the heavy lines, except E. F. Fasten the center pieces at the 
bottom, one over the other. Fasten the sides together and your flower pot is 
ready for use. If you will handle it carefully and not put too much water 
on the soil in it at any one time the pot will look nice for some time. Heavy 
waxed paper is the best to use if it can be obtained. Paraffined bristol board 
can usually be had at the book store or print shop and is very good for this 
piece of work. Fig. 15 shows such a flower pot before and after putting it 
together. 




FIG. 15. 



Fire Kindlers. 
It is very disagreeable to make a fire in a cold room when you have to 
depend upon shavings, bark and kerosene for kindling. A very excellent 
remedy for this is to make a bunch of kindlers that are always ready and 
which will start the fire. This may be done as follows: 

Take one quart of tar and three pounds of resin; melt them together, 
and before they are cool mix with as much sawdust as they will hold. Usually 
an old tin pail or cast away kettle can be used to do the melting. It is well 



34< 



Soils and Fertilizers 



to add a little powdered charcoal to the sawdust. After you have worked in 
all of the sawdust that you can^ spread the mixture on a board to dry. 

When it is dry break into sinall pieces, and you will have enough kindling 
to last a long time. A match will light the kindlers and they will burn 
long enough to start almost any wood. Be careful in heating this mixture 
not to get it on fire. In case the material caught fire you would have difficulty 
in putting it out. 

How to MaJce a Still Out of Cake Tins. 
Rain water contains very little solid material, and can be used in experi- 
ments where pure water is required. Sometimes, however, pure rain water is 
not to be had and then we must prepare some water by distilling well water 

(that is, by boiling it, collecting 
COLff WATER |-}^g steam and changing it back 

into water by cooling it). 

The apparatus used to distill 
water is usually rather expensive, 
but the accompanying drawing 
shows an inexpensive method by 
which we may obtain comparative- 
ly pure water. This water still 
consists of two pans and a cake 
tin. The central cone of the cake 
tin must be cut down until its top 
is a little below the bottom of the 
upper pan. Water is placed in the 
top and bottom pan. When heated 
below, steam forms, passes up into 
the second pan and, striking the bottom of the top pan, is cooled and falls as 
water into the cake tin. The water in the upper pan will have to be changed 
frequently as it becomes hot. 




/JtJPURE 

vmT£8 



FIG. 16. 



How Soils Are Formed 35 

QUESTIONS AND PROBLEMS. 

1. What is the boiling point of water, Fahrenheit? Centigrade? 

2. How fast does a ray of sunshine travel? 

3. What happens to water left in the sunshine? 

4. If air presses down with a force of 15 lbs. to the square inch, what is the 

pressure per square foot? 

5. Loam weighs 92 lbs. per cubic foot; sandy soil weighs 100 lbs. per cubic 

foot. How much would a cubic foot of sandy loam weigh if the two 
were mixed equally ? How much would a cubic foot weigh if they 
were mixed two parts sand to one part loam ? How much would a cubic 
foot weigh if they were mixed two parts loam to one part sand? 

6. If ninety-seven one hundredths of a plant comes from the air, how many 

pounds of material in a bushel of corn comes from the soil? What is 
this substance called? 

7. If a pound of soil water contains one-tenth ounce of phosphorus, one- 

tenth ounce of potash and two-tenths ounce of lime, how many ounces 
of pure water is there in a pound of soil water ? How much lime would 
there be in 14. lbs. of water? How much potash? 

8. How many pounds of soil water like the above would have to pass 

through a plant to leave a pound of mineral matter? 

9. How many pounds are there in a ton? 

10. If three one-hundredths part of hay comes from the mineral matter of 

the soil, how many pounds of mineral matter must be furnished to 
the plant to produce one ton of hay? 

11. If one cubic foot of soil contains four-tenths cubic foot of air space, how 

many pounds of water would it hold if water weighs 62,8 lbs. per 
cubic foot? 

12. If a rock has one and one-half pounds of its surface broken into soil 

particles each year, how much soil would be formed from it in twelve 

years ? 

13. If a cubic foot of water weighs nine-tenths as much as a cubic foot of 

loam, how much does a cubic foot of loam weigh? 

14. What does qt. mean? pk. ? pkg. ? gal.? bu.? 
How many pks. in a bu. ? How many qts. in a bu. ? 

15. How many hours in three and one- fourth days? 

16. If the water in a ditch carries 100 lbs. of plant food an hour, how many 

pounds will it carry away in one and one-half days ? 



36 Soils and Fertilizers 

17. If flower pots cost 20c apiece for six-inch pots, 25c apiece for seven- 
inch pots, and 30c apiece for eight-inch pots, make an order for the 
following: One-half dozen six-inch, eight seven-inch, and one dozen 
eight-inch flower pots. Write out the order as if you were going to 
mail it to some firm. Show the total cost on the order. 

REFERENCES. 

Unproductive Black Soils ; State Experiment Station, Lafayette, Ind., Bul- 
letin 157. 

Halligan's Fundamentals of Agriculture; published by D. C. Heath Co. 

Experimental Botany, by Payne; published by the American Book Co. 

Encyclopedia of American Agriculture; by L. H. Bailey. Published by 
the American Book Co. 



CHAPTER III 

CLASSES OF SOILS. 

How Soils Are Classified: You veiy well know that the soil 
of one field is seldom Hke the soil of another field. Even in 
different parts of the same field, the soil is different. It would 
be hard to learn very much about soils if we had to study each 
field separateljr, so men have divided soils into different classes, 
and the soil of every field is described under these classes. Some 
people speak of all soils as being either heavy or light; others 
divide them into warm and cold soils. 

A very good method of classification and the one most com- 
monly used, is to divide soils into groups depending on the size 
of the soil particles, and the amount of humus which is present. 
When we classify soils on this basis, we have four types: clay, 
loam, muck and sand. Gravel is not ordinarily classified as a 
soil. If a soil contains clay and loam it is called a sandy loam., 
etc. 

So although we have four distinct types of soils, they are 
divided into several divisions, the following being the most com- 
mon: Clay, heavy clay loam, loam, sandy loam, light sandy 
loam, fine sand, medium sand, and coarse sand. Students should 
collect as many of these as possible. 

Clay: If the soil does not contain much organic matter, or 
humus, and is very finely divided it is called clay. The most 
important difference between clay and any other soil is the size 
of the soil particles. This difference produces many other con- 
ditions peculiar to a clay soil. Coarse soil allows water to pass 
through it readily, but fine soil as clay, holds a great deal of this 

37 



38 



Soils and Fertilizers 



water. After a rain a fine soil stays wet for a long time, and this 
keeps out the air which makes such a soil undesirable for many 
crops. 

Clay a Cold Soil: Large amounts of water leave a soil of 
this kind by evaporating from the surface and as long as evapora- 
tion is taking place, the soil will remain cold. A good way to 
show that evaporation produces coolness is to moisten the finger 
a little and then wave it through the air. You will notice that 
the finger will become cool where the moisture has been applied, 
and will remain so until the moisture is all evaporated. 




/ 



(1) Puddled Clay. 



FIG. 17. 
(2) Puddled Clay exposed to the action of freezing and thawing. 



JVhy Clay Is Called "^^ Heavy'': The finer the soil particles 
are in the soil, the stickier the soil is when moist, and, therefore, 
a clay soil is usually very sticky. This fact and the fact that it is 
usually very hard when dry makes it hard to work and farmers 
for this reason call it a "heavy" soil. Although clay weighs only 
80 pounds per cubic foot and sand weighs 110 pounds per cubic 
foot, clay is called heavy soil and sand light soil, for clay is hard 
to work, while sand works very readily. 



Classes of Soils 39 

In dividing soils into the classes warm and cold soils, we call 
clay a cold soil, for the reason that we have shown previously, 
and for the further reason that light colored soils do not absorb 
heat as well as dark soils. Organic matter gives soils their dark 
color and since clay contains very little organic matter, it is 
almost always light in color. The reddish or yellowish color 
which clay usually shows is due to the iron present. 

Plant Food in a Clay Soil: Although the above characteris- 
tic makes clay undesirable for a number of crops, there are many 
ways to improve it, and these methods will be mentioned under 
Improvement of Soils. One of the greatest advantages of a clay 
soil is the fact that the plant food is very readily soluble. The 
finer the soil particles the easier it is for water to dissolve the 
food, and for this reason clay soil is the richest of all soils in 
mineral plant foods. 

Grasses will grow on cold soils when other crops will not 
live, and since clay is a cold soil it is usually called grass land. 
Name some crops that will grow well in cool weather. Do such 
crops grow well on clay ground? Which is the better suited to 
clay ground, wheat or corn? Bring some clay from home and 
examine it carefully. Various experiments at the close of each 
chapter will help you to learn several important things about clay. 

Loam: As a general purpose soil, (for growing different 
kinds of crops ) a loam soil is the best soil that we have. Its texture 
is neither so fine as clay, nor so coarse as sand. Loam soil will 
hold a large amount of water and yet does not hold so much 
as to keep out the air. This soil is finely enough divided to sup- 
ply the average crop with mineral plant foods although the food 
is not so readily soluble as it is in the clay. 

Since a loam soil contains organic matter it is easy to work 
and does not become hard when dry, or sticky when wet. Also 
the organic matter makes the soil black, and a black soil absorbs 
heat better than a light soil, as has been mentioned. 



40 Soils and Fertilizers 

For this reason a loam soil becomes warm early in the spring 
and is called a warm soil. That a white color will not absorb heat 
as well as black is shown by the fact that we wear white garments 
in the summer to turn off the heat from the sun. 

Loam is a good soil in which to plant garden vegetables since 
it is warmer than most soils. It is also a good soil for corn. 
Loam is very easy to till and is called a light soil although by 
weight it is as heavy as clay. Bring some loam from home to 
school and experiment with it as with the clay. Weight equal 
volumes of dry loam and clay. Compare their weights. 

Muck: A soil which contains large amounts of partially de- 
cayed organic matter is called a muck soil. Such a soil is usually 
found around old swamps where ponds have been and on low 
level ground. It is found in such places, because water is one of 
the chief agencies that helps to produce muck soils. 

To understand fully how such soils are formed we must un- 
derstand decay. When a plant dies it at once begins to decay and 
to go back into its former state. This decay is called oxidation, 
as mentioned previously. If in any manner air is kept away from 
the plant it will not decay and it is this principle that produces 
a muck soil. 

The plant when it dies is covered with water, or submerged 
in a wet soil and decay cannot continue with much rapidity on 
account of lack of air. 

Also heat makes decay take place more rapidly, and since a 
wet soil is a cold soil this helps to prevent the dead plant from 
decaying. After dead plants have accumulated on such a soil for 
a number of years we say that the soil is a muck soil. The dead 
plant is principally carbon and makes the soil black and sticky. 
A muck soil has a very undesirable structure and this must be 
changed before the soil can become very valuable. Also it is 
very cold on account of the moisture which it contains. This 
too must be remedied. A muck soil is most always unable to pro- 



Classes of Soils 4)1 

duce a crop because it is acid. You should examine some muck 
soil veiy carefully for acid. A later paragraph will tell you how 
to do this. 

When organic matter, which is the main substance in a muck 
soil, is present only in small amounts and mixed with other min- 
eral matter, the soil is called a loam soil. If a large amount of 
organic matter is mixed with clay, the soil is called a clay loam, 
or gumbo soil. Gumbo soil is found in small sections of most 
states, as Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, etc., but in greater amounts in 
the Southern States, Alabama and Louisiana being good ex- 
amples. 

Peat: A large quantity of pure organic matter well decayed 
is spongy black and sticky. You can easily find some of this 
kind of soil if you will scrape some of the dead leaves from the 
soil in the woods. You will be apt to find a soil composed of dead 
trees, plants and leaves, and containing very little mineral matter. 
Such a muck soil is called peat. In cool countries, where it is 
always moist, the peat soils become very thick. In some of these 
countries, such as Ireland, the people dry this peat and use it for 
fuel. In other words, they complete the oxidation which is not 
completed by the air. Why is it that a rotten piece of wood if 
thoroughly dry will burn quicker than a solid piece of dry wood ? 
Get your teacher to explain to you how coal is formed. 

Humus: Humus is usually defined as decayed vegetable 
matter. This definition often causes humus to be confused with 
muck and peat. There is very little difference between the three 
terms, but they do not refer to the same things. Muck is un- 
decayed, or only slightly decayed organic matter, usually wet. 
It is found in low undrained areas. Peat is almost pure organic 
matter, and when dry can be used as fuel. Peat usually contains 
less inorganic, or mineral matter than muck. Humus exists as 
a portion of a peat, muck, or loam soil, and, indeed, is found in 
all soils that produce crops naturally. It will be discussed in the 
following paragraphs. 



42 Soils and Fertilizers 

Fertility and Humus: Plant and animal matter partly de- 
cayed is termed hmnus, and its presence in a soil gives the dark 
color characteristic of highly productive land. The close relation 
between the color of a soil and its productivity is so general, that 
many farmers judge a soil entirely by the depth of the color. 
The most apparent change in the soil as it becomes exhausted is 
the gradual loss of color until the dark color has entirely disap- 
peared. At this state a soil is no longer capable of producing 
paying crops. In nine cases out of ten, the loss of soil fertility 
is in direct relation to the loss of humus, and in no case can a soil 
lacking in humus be naturally productive. The maintenance 
of humus, therefore, is the very foundation of increased soil 
productivity and good farm management. 

Nature of Humus: Any organic substance, when completely 
decayed, is changed into the gases and mineral substances from 
which it came. During the process of decay, we designate the 
substance as humus. The term humus is used as a general term. 
Humus proper is a very complex substance, partly soluble, dark 
in color and gummy or sticky in its nature. This gummy nature, 
together with the other properties, is well shown in a muck soil. 

Humus, while very complex, contains two classes of sub- 
stances. One class includes all substances which contain nitrogen, 
the most important factor in its composition, although possibly 
not the most important factor in its value. The other class of 
substances which goes to make humus is mineral elements. The 
mineral elements, however, are not so important or valuable as 
the nitrogenous substances. 

Supply of Humus: Most humus in a soil is supplied directly 
by the plants which grow on the fields. When the tops are re- 
moved from the plants in harvesting, only the roots go to furnish 
humus. In some cases, the entire plant is plowed under to in- 
crease this supply. Oft-times the plants are removed and later 
returned to the soil in the form of barnyard manure. Sometimes 



Classes of Soils 43 

fertilizers derived directly from plants and animals are applied 
to the soil to supply hmnus, such as cottonseed meal, and dried 
blood. Also there are in the soil great numbers of microscopic 
plants called bacteria, which by their death and decay produce 
humus. Although the forms of life that may furnish humus are 
many, the one great fact remains, that our entire source of humus 
is the result of the death and decay of living things. It is the 
farmer's duty to see to it that humus which can only be obtained 
by the loss of life, is returned to the soil to the best possible ad- 
vantage. It should be remembered that if the humus content 
of a soil is retained, its fertility will last for a very long time. 

Conditio7is Favorable For the Formation of Humus: Since 
all humus is the product of decay, the rate at which decay can 
take place largely determines the humus present. Decay will 
take place only in the presence of air, heat and moisture. There- 
fore, if a soil is undrained, or is very compact, decay takes place 
very slowly, on account of the lack of air, and thus the produc- 
tion of humus is hindered. If, on the other hand, the soil is too 
well drained, as in a sandy soil, very much air passes through it 
and decay takes place too rapidly. In this case the organic 
matter is entirely destroyed, much of it going back to its original 
form of gases and mineral matter. 

Therefore, we may conclude that the drainage of a soil has 
much to do with the formation of humus. Also, a soil that is 
warm and well tilled, forms humus from vegetable matter very 
rapidly. 

Relation of Mineral Substances to Decay: A soil must have 
certain mineral substances present before humus will become 
abundant, for without these substances the organisms which pro- 
duce decay can not live. One of these substances, and, indeed, 
the most important one is lime. The subject of lime on the soil 
will be fully discussed in later paragraphs. 

Value of Humus On a Soil: As has been said, humus is 



44 



Soils and F ertilizers 



gelatinous or gummy in its nature, and very porous. When it is 
applied to a soil, it makes a better structure, and reduces the 
tendency of the soil to bake, or puddle. By making the soil 
crumbly in structure tillage is much easier accomplished, and in 
such a soil plants can root much more freely. 

Humus will absorb great quantities of water, and when 
present in a soil prevents the loss of large amounts of soil water. 
The water v/hich lumius absorbs dissolves from it large quanti- 
ties of readily available plant food which the plant can use di- 
rectly. The humus, besides furnishing plant food, helps also 
to liberate plant food from the mineral part of the soil. 




FIG. 18. 
(A) Plants in sand with humus added; (B) Plants in pure sand. 

Finally, humus in a soil permits plants to grow more vigor- 
ously and makes them better able to withstand disease or drought. 
It is usually considered that from one-third to one-fifth of the 
organic matter found in a soil is available (useable) in the form 
of humus. 

Sand: Pure sand would be a very poor soil for several rea- 
sons. It is so porous that it will not hold enough moisture to 
support a plant through the dry seasons. . It is so coarse and 
insoluble, that the water which a plant obtains from it contains 



Classes of Soils 45 

very little mineral foods. It is not compact enough for plants 
to get a very firm foothold and consequently winds oft-times 
blow the plants over. 

On the other hand sand is a very warm soil, and when modi- 
fied with other substances a very early crop can be obtained, for 
plants will grow in such a soil in the spring before they will start 
to grow in other soils. 

Gardeners always like to have a sandy soil for the above 
reason. We can take a sandy soil, and if it is not too coarse, 
we can make a very excellent soil of it. We are to learn in the 
next chapter how to do this, as well as how to improve the other 
soils which have been discussed. Sand is the best soil we can 
use for germinating seeds. The sand is warm and admits air. 
It is also clean and can be handled without inconvenience. If 
you test any seeds for germination at this time use sand in the 
seed tester. It will not furnish food for the plants, but they will 
not need it so long as there is food in the seed from which they 
grow. 

The Subsoil: That part of a field which is called soil usually 
occupies the surface six to twelve inches. Sometimes, however, 
this surface soil is many feet thick and sometimes it is less than six 
inches in depth. There are several differences between subsoil 
and surface soil. The subsoil is usually harder to work than the 
surface soil and can generally be told from the surface soil by 
its color. The surface soil is darker in color on account of the 
organic matter which it contains. Also, the plant food in the 
surface soil is more readily dissolved than the plant food in the 
subsoil. As subsoils decay they become more and more like sur- 
face soils. The nature of the subsoil has much to do with the 
value of a surface soil. It determines in a large measure the fer- 
tility, drainage and texture of the surface soil. Dig down into 
a field at home. Notice the difference between the surface and 
the subsoil. About how deep is the surface soil? What kind of 
a subsoil do you find under the surface soil ? 



46 



Soils and Fertilizers 



EXPERIMENT NO. 11. 

Difference in Soils Demonstrated. 

Obtain three small jars or bottles which can be sealed tightly for col- 
lecting soil samples. Pint fruit jars are about as good as anything readily 
found. Go to the field and scrape away the plants and surface soil to about 
the depth of an inch. Take a sample of this soil and put it into one of the 
small jars. Seal it tightly so that none of the moisture can escape. Dig 
down 6 inches and take another sample of soil. Place this sample in another 
bottle and seal. Likewise secure another sample at a depth of 12 inches 
from the surface. 

When you return to the schoolroom weigh out equal amounts (about four 
ounces) of each soil. Spread each sample in a shallow pan and let it dry 
for two or three days. Weigh each sample again at the end of this time. 
The diiference between these weights and the first weight is the amount of 
water which each soil contained, that could be removed by evaporation. Note 
the color of each sample of soil. If you have a microscope, examine each 
soil with it. 

Heat each sample in an iron spoon until everything that will burn has 
been burned. Weigh each one again. The difference between these weights 
and the previous ones shows the amount of organic matter in each sample. 
The final weights show the amount of mineral matter which each soil con- 
tains. Write the results in your note-book in the following form: 



Depth 
of 
soil 


Total 
amount 
of 
soil 


Amount 

of 
moisture 
present 


Amount of 
organic 
matter 
present 


Amount of 
mineral 
matter 
present 


Color 
of 
the 
soil 


Size 
of the 

soil 
grains 


1 inch 














6 inches 














12 inche<=! 














Averag-e 





























Classes of Soils 4,7 

EXPERIMENT NO. 12. 

Physical Composition of Soils. 

To say that a soil contains clay^ silt (a coarser form of clay) or humus 
does not mean anything very definite to a student. To let him find the clay, 
or silt, in a soil for himself is a different proposition. This experiment is 
arranged to permit a student to determine for himself the substances in a soil. 

To perform this experiment, obtain a glass tumbler, two quart fruit jars, 
or similar glass vessels, some soil of each kind to be tested, and a microscope, 
if there is one to be had. 

Put a tablespoonful of soil in a tumbler and fill full of water. Stir 
thoroughly. Let stand a moment and then pour oif the muddy water into one 
of the larger vessels. Put on more water, stir and pour off again. Repeat this 
operation four times in all, pouring the muddy water each time into the same 
vessel. Add water, stir, and pour off four more times, as above, except pour 
the water into the other large vessel. 

Eet the two vessels stand for a short time and compare sediments. That 
which remains in suspension is real clay and very fine silt. The sediment 
is loam and granulated particles of clay. The material which remains in the 
tumbler is principally sand. 

If you have a microscope examine the different soil grains and describe 
each. Proceed in this way with each of the soils to be tested. 

Heat a teaspoonful of soil in a large spoon until it is red hot. Which 
kind of soil burns? What do you have left.? 

What difference does the composition of a soil make as to the agricultural 
value of the soil.? 

Write a discussion explaining the results of this experiment. 

Estimate the percentage of each kind of soil constituent in the soils which 
you have examined. 

Name the soils that you have examined according to the substances which 
they contain. 



48 Soils and Fertilizers 

EXPERIMENT NO. 13. 

Temperature of Light and Dark Soils. 

Take some loam soil and put about equal amounts in two pans. Place the 
bulb of a thermometer in each soil. Be sure that the bulb is covered with soil. 
Cover the surface of one pan of the soil with a thin layer of salt, sugar, flour 
or any similar white substance. Set the two pans in the sunshine and read the 
thermometers every ten minutes for an hour. Do not remove the ther- 
mometers to read them. What difference do you note in temperature.'* What 
does this show you about light colored soils? 

EXPERIMENT NO. 14. 

Why a Soil Becomes Cloddy. 

Take a small sample of all the kinds of soil which you can obtain and 
place each in a shallow pan. Cover them with water and stir until each is 
mixed thoroughly. Use equal amounts of soil and pour over each the same 
amount of water. Set the pans away to dry. Which kind of soil dries first? 
Why? Which last? Why? After they are all dry, examine them. Which 
one is the hardest? Which one is the softest? Why? What happens when 
we plow soil which is too wet? Do you think that it pays to start the plow 
a little early in order to gain a few days of time? 





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PLATE 5. 
49 



50 Soils and Fertilizers 

AGRICULTURAL APPARATUS AND HOW IT IS MADE. 

A Soil Screen. 

There should always be a supply of soil kept in the laboratory, and this 
ean be prepared by use of a soil screen. A neat method of storing soil for 
school experiments is discussed in another chapter. 

In order to remove all large particles, clods, rocks, etc., from the soil it 
should be screened into the soil bins. To prepare a soil screen for this pur- 
pose obtain any soft wood of the dimensions given in Fig. 2, Plate 4. The 
fastening together of this frame for your soil screen can be accomplished 
by merely using 8d nails. If you cut your pieces for opposite sides exactly 
the same length your corners will be square. The bottom strips to hold the 
screen in place should be put on with one inch flat head bright screws. You 
can strengthen the soil screen if you desire by fastening three cornered blocks 
in each of the corners ; this can be done with glue and nails. This is not shown 
on the plate. Ordinary galvanized screen wire is a very serviceable form of 
wire to use and is fine enough for most soil work. Put dry soil into the sieve 
that you have made and, by shaking it over the soil bin, fine, clean soil will be 
obtained. Nothing adds interest to soil work so much as nice, fine soil with 
which to work. 

Home-Made Scales. 
Balances are very necessary in many experiments, but they are rather 
expensive. A pair of balances, which will do for all ordinary purposes, can be 
made at school. Take a 1-inch square upright and fasten it to a base, as 
shown in Figs. 3 and 4, Plate 5. Cut a V-shaped groove in the top of the 
upright. Obtain an umbrella rib and through the hole where the short stay 
was attached put a darning needle. Cut the umbrella stay so that it is the 
same distance from either end to the darning needle. Fasten pans to the 
arms of the balance as shown in the drawing. Lids from baking powder cans 
make good pans. Suspend the needle across the V-shaped groove in the 
upright and balance the pans by sticking gum or wax to the lighter pan. 
When the pans balance you have a very serviceable pair of scales which will 
weigh accurately enough for your use in the laboratory or schoolroom. 

Scoops from Tin Cans. 
In working with soils it is very convenient to have soil scoops. One 
which will serve very well can be made out of the material found around the 
home. Such a scoop can be used around the barn in the ground feed, salt, etc. 
If neatly fashioned, smaller scoops may be made to use in the sugar and flour 
bins, etc., of the kitchen. 



Classes of Soils 



51 



Take a tin can and either cut or melt off the top. 'Now, beginning at 
the open end and one-fourth way round each way from the seam, split the 
side of the can to within one-half inch of the bottom. You will need a 
heavy pair of shears to do this. Tinners' snips are best if you can obtain a 
pair. Then cut off one-half even with the splits which you have made in the 
sides. Round the corners of the open end and the body of your scoop is 
finished. See Plate 5, Fig. 2. Cut a piece of one-half inch wood to fit the 
bottom of the can. Place it as shown in the cut, Plate 5, Fig. 1. 




FIG. 19. 
Secure an old broom handle and cut a piece about three inches long for 
a handle. Put a screw through the board at the bottom of the can into the 
handle and your scoop is complete. You can make a hole through the tin for 
the screw with a nail if you have no metal drills. A one-inch or one and one- 
half-inch Number 8 screw is about the right size. When completed compare 
your scoop with the picture of the ones above. You might use any of the 
above styles you desire in making your scoop. 

How to Sharpen Scissors. 
It is very easy to sharpen a pair of scissors or shears even if you do not 
have a whetstone. If you use a pair of shears in making your soil scoop as 
above mentioned they will need sharpening. To sharpen them take a bottle 
or glass jar and put one blade inside the jar and the other outside. Act just 
as if you were trying to cut the jar. Repeat this cutting motion several times 
and your shears will be sharp. Do not use too much pressure. 



52 Soils and Fertilizers 

QUESTIONS AND PROBLEMS. 

1. If a sample of soil which weighed 6 oz. weighed 5 oz. after being ex- 

posed to the air for two days, what fractional part of the 6 oz. was 
water } 

2. If a sample of soil which weighed 6 oz. weighed 2l^ oz. after being 

burned, what fractional part of the 6 oz. remained? 

3. How many ounces in 12^ pounds.^ In one-eighth pound? In two and 

one-sixth pounds ? In three and one-fifth pounds ? 

4. How many pounds and ounces in 28 oz.? In 56 oz.? In 80 oz. ? 

5. How many square inches in a piece of screen wire 15 in. by 24 in.? 

How many square feet ? What would it be worth at 8c per square foot ? 

6. Your experiments require 7 cu. ft. of clay weighing 80 lbs. per cubic 

foot; 9 cu. ft. of sandy loam weighing 98 lbs. per cubic foot, and 
6 cu. ft. of clay loam weighing 92 lbs. per cubic foot, and 12 cu. ft. 
of humus weighing 50 lbs. per cubic foot. How many pounds would 
this be altogether? 

7. A man has 12 A. of clay land worth $70 an acre; 22 A. of loam soil 

worth $120 per acre. What is the average price of his land per acre? 

8. Loam yields 5% bu. more corn per acre than clay soil. How much more 

is the corn crop from a forty-acre loam field worth than the crop from 
a forty-acre clay field, if the corn is worth 40c a bushel and the loam 
soil yields 40 bu. per acre? 

9. Forty-five gallons make a barrel. How many gallons in 603 bbls. ? 

10. How much would a 45-gal. barrel of water weigh if 1 qt. of water weighs 

2 lbs. and the barrel weighed 80 lbs.? 

11. A cubic foot of clay soil will hold 32 lbs. of water. How many gallons, 

quarts and pints is this ? 

12. Write an order to some one for the following: 

One-half bushel yellow corn at $5.00 per bu. 

One peck Red Clover seed at 8.00 per bu. 

Twelve packages Assorted Flower Seed at .10 per pkg. 
Three quarts Winter Onion sets at 1.20 per gal. 

How much money would you have to enclose for such an order? 



CHAPTER IV 

SOIL IMPROVEMENT. 

The Problem of the Farmer: Most farmers know quite well 
how to feed animals, and when to market them, how to manage 
a farm, and what kind of farming they are best prepared to do. 
But the number of farmers who are acquainted with their soils, 
and who know how to improve them are very few indeed. The 
problem of soil fertility is the greatest problem confronting the 
farmer today. This includes the problem of soil moisture, for 
soil moisture composes the greatest portion of all crops. 

Every student must realize that each field is a separate prob- 
lem, and its case must be considered individually. No two fields 
respond exactly alike to the same treatment, for they are never 
lacking in exactly the same substances in the same amounts. No 
general rules can be used to cure a soil any more than a few 
general facts will cure all sick people. 

The person who attempts to cure or benefit the productive 
power of a soil must know how to find out what the soil needs, 
how best to apply this needed material, and when and what to 
apply. 

A doctor of medicine examines a sick person and after find- 
ing out what is wrong proceeds to correct that ailment. He does 
not give every sick person the same kind of medicine. Neither 
should you give every soil the same treatment. You as a soil doc- 
tor, should do more than the doctor of medicine. You should 
not only be interested in making poor sick soils well, but in 
making good healthy soils better. It is a very difficult study, 
and the problems are large ones. There are a few rules for im- 

53 



54 



Soils and Fertilizers 



proving the various classes of soils that we should knovs^ and be 
able to apply, just as there are a few rules for maintaining good 
health. The special needs of soils we will have to learn by ob- 
servation, practice and study. 

Improvement of a Clay Soil: One of the things that causes 
a great deal of trouble for the farmer is the fact that a clay soil 
puddles very easily. Soil particles arranging themselves very 




B Fig. 20 A 

(A) Treated soil; (B) Part of same field untreated. 

close together so that they become very hard in structure when 
dry is called puddling. (See Fig. 17.) Puddling is caused in 
most cases by plowing or cultivating the soil while it is too wet. 
Farmers say of such a soil that it bakes. Puddled soil may always 
be seen in the bottom of a hog wallow after the water has evapo- 
rated. The soil while wet has been stirred by the hogs, and the 
soil grains have been able to get as close together as possible. 



Soil Improvement 55 

When such a soil dries, it becomes almost as hard as cement. In- 
deed, a long time ago people used to make brick this same way. 
They would stir a clay soil while it was very wet and then make 
it into the shape of bricks. They would leave these bricks to dry 
in the sun and after they were dry, they called them sun dried 
bricks. You might try making a brick like the people a long time 
ago used. Get your teacher to tell you how bricks are made 
today. If there is a brickyard near your school go see how 
bricks are made. 

Soil Plowed Wet: When soil is plowed too wet it behaves 
just as if it had been made into sun dried bricks. Plants will 
starve in such a soil, for all of the plant food is locked up. A 
clay soil plowed too wet will not recover from the injury it re- 
ceives for two or three years. Therefore, one of the most im- 
portant rules to follow regarding clay is dont plow while the soil 
is too wet. Soil is too wet to plow when a handful of it worked 
in the hand and made into a ball will pack and become slick on 
the outside. 

Acid In a Clay Soil: Another thing that sometimes causes 
a clay soil to puddle is the acid which it contains. Acid in a soil 
tends to cement the soil grains together, making a very hard 
compact mass. It should therefore be removed. This is best 
done by removing surplus water and by the addition of soil 
amendments. By soil amendments we mean anything which 
will help to correct an improper condition of the soil. This sub- 
ject will be discussed under the chapter on Fertilizers. The 
only way to remove surplus water successfully is by drainage, so 
remember that clay should always he well drained. 

Effect of Drainage On Clay Soil: In a clay soil the texture 
is too fine to permit air to penetrate, or to permit water to pass 
through as it should. We cannot change its texture much, but 
we can change its structure. Plowing while the soil is wet should 



56 Soils and Fertilizers 

change its structure, but this method would ruin the soil. It 
would make the clay soil very lumpy and hard. 

The drainage of a clay soil allows air to penetrate more freely 
and air acting on the lime which is present sticks little groups of 
the soil grains together, which makes the clay coarser in structure. 
These little groups of soil grains are not stuck together so tightly 
as to make them worthless. This permits the air and moisture 
to pass freely and is a very beneficial change in the soil structure. 
It is in fact the main reason why we should drain a clay soil. On 
some soils drainage does not have this eiFect, because there is no 
lime in the soil. Such a soil needs lime applied to change its 
structure. 

Effect of Humus On Clay: Humus applied to a clay soil 
is one of the best methods of modifying its structure. Humus 
makes the soil more porous and allows air to enter freely. It 
not only admits the air, but also helps to prevent the soil from 
washing by rain, or drifting by wind. 

A clay soil containing humus is not ordinarily easy to puddle. 
It does not become hard when dry. Clay soil alone contains 
mineral plant foods in abundance, but since plants can not live 
on mineral matter alone, we must apply humus so the plant may 
have all of the food material that it needs. 

Remember that a clay soil needs humus more than any other 
soil both as food for the plant, and as an agent to modify the 
structure of the soil. Commercial fertilizers are usually of little 
value to clay soil. This will be discussed further under the 
chapter on Fertilizers. 

Improvement of a Loam Soil: The structure of a loam soil 
is usually very good. It contains both organic and mineral plant 
foods. It is classed as a warm soil. If, as sometimes happens, 
a loam soil is cold, it is because the soil needs drainage. This is 
one thing that loam soils need in many cases. 



Soil Improvement 67 

While both mineral and organic plant foods are present in a 
loam soil, some of the essential ones may not be present in large 
amounts. The ones which we need apply as fertilizers must be 
largely determined by the crop that is to be grown on such a 
soil, as well as the manner in which the soil has been cropped for 
the past several years. 

Crops For Loam Soil: Rapid growing crops, as corn, are 
usually grown on loam soils. Such crops require large amounts 
of moisture in a short growing season. Therefore, the moisture 
supply of a loam soil must be looked after by proper drainage 
and tillage. A loam soil usually becomes poor rapidly, because 
it is most likely to be abused. Air can pass through it readily, 
and as a result the organic matter oxidizes rapidly. If we con- 
tinue to raise large crops on such a soil, and take away the crops 
in a few years the supply of organic matter is almost gone, and 
as a result the structure, tilth and fertility is destroyed. A loam 
soil is a good soil, but it requires care or it will not remain fertile 
and productive. 

Improvement of Muck Soils: Muck soils are quite variable 
and no rules for improving such soils will apply generally. Some 
muck soils contain more organic matter than others and again 
this organic matter is more completely decayed in some cases 
than in others. However, the one condition common to all muck 
soils is the large amount of organic matter which is present. This 
condition is favorable for a very fertile soil. Organic matter 
in large quantities makes a soil that does not drain naturally, 
and further such a soil is almost invariably acid. Artificial drain- 
age is one method of improving such a soil, and the addition of 
fertilizers, or substances to correct the acidity of the soil is an- 
other. It is not hard to correct the acidity of soil if you know how 
to go about it. 

Some people try to improve muck or humus soils by burning 
the top layer of soil. This is a poor way of improvement and 



68 Soils and Fertilizers 

should not be practiced except in very rare cases. When this is 
done but very Httle acid is neutralized, while a great deal of or- 
ganic matter is destroyed. Drainage and soil amendments are 
the secret of success in handling muck soils. 

Improvement of Sandy Soils: A sandy soil may be made a 
very excellent soil by proper treatment. A sandy soil is loose 
and open in structure, which condition permits the roots of a grow- 
ing plant to pass freely in all directions. In such a soil the re- 
sistance offered to the roots is not sufficient to check their lateral 
growth, and the water is usually far enough below the surface 
to permit a plant to root deeply. Plants must have their roots 
scattered over a large area to obtain the moisture which they re- 
quire, particularly through the summer months. When you stop 
to think that a corn plant on a warm day in July or August will 
consume as much as two and one-half lbs. of water and that 
the soil from which this must be obtained is so dry that by no pos- 
sible means could we squeeze a single drop from it, you will see 
why it is necessary that the roots cover a larger area. 

Humus On Sandy Soils: If we add humus to a sandy soil 
we increase the power of the soil to hold water, for humus is like 
a sponge. It soaks up large amounts of soil water, yet it does 
not prevent the roots from growing freely in all directions. 

If we drain a sandy soil and put the drains rather close to 
the surface, the water can supply the plants for a longer period 
of time. By putting a shallow drain in sandy soil, we raise the 
level of the soil moisture which permits the plants to use water 
which they would not otherwise obtain. This will be discussed 
further under drainage. 

Plowing At the Same Depth: By plowing at the same depth 
each year we may improve the water holding power of a sandy 
soil. Plowing at the same depth year after year has a tendency 
to firm the soil below the plow, and this allows the moisture to be 
brought up from below more readily. 



Soil Improvement 69 

Sandy soil has a great advantage over clay soil in the respect 
that it neither bakes when it becomes dry, nor becomes saturated 
with water after every rain. Also a plant can obtain what 
moisture there is present from a sandy soil easier than it can from 
a clay soil, for a sandy soil yields its water readily while a clay 
soil retains it vigorously. A sandy soil is from 5 degrees to 10 
degrees warmer in the spring than a clay soil and will warm up 
to a greater depth early in the season. The warm spring rains 
soak into a sandy soil and warm it by forcing out the cold water 
that is already present. In a clay soil the cold water that is 
present remains and the spring rains run off as surface water. 
This fact makes a sandy soil an earlier soil for planting crops. 

However, the water that passes through a sandy soil takes 
plant foods with it and these must be replaced by the addition of 
fertilizers. Humus will replace some of these plant foods. 

How Plants Live In Different Soils: Plants adapt them- 
selves to all kinds of soils, and this fact lias helped many plants 
to become used to certain kinds of soils, and has permitted them 
to thrive there although they formerly preferred another kind 
of soil. We associate certain crops with certain soils and it is 
always best to plant the desired crop on the soil suitable for that 
crop, rather than to modify the soil to suit the crop. It is per- 
fectly correct to study methods of modifying the soil, but we must 
not disregard the nature of the plants we are raising. 

The crops which we are attempting to raise, by careful selec- 
tion can be so chosen, as to fit the particular kind of soil which 
we are tilling. By this means we can avoid needless expense in 
a vain effort to change the nature of the soil. As a rule, fit the 
crop to your soil, rather than your soil to the crop. 



60 Soils and Fertilizers 

EXPERIMENT NO. 15. 

Planning a Rotation. 

Have each pupil bring samples of surface soil and of subsoil from the 
fields at home. Classify each and compare the value of the diiferent sub- 
soils. These soil samples can be brought to school in small tin cans or boxes. 

Have pupils make drawings of the farm at home^ showing each field. 
Write in the drawing of each field the kind of crop grown, the kind of sur- 
face soil, and the kind of subsoil. 

On this farm plan a four years' rotation. Write the name of the crop 
to be planted in each field, and the time the same should be planted. 

Note how many times each field must be plowed in four years. 

Note how many months each field will lie idle during this time. 

Upon which fields would you place the barnyard manure in your rotation.'' 
Why.? 

By using colored crayons and letting different colors denote different 
crops a very interesting map may be made. 

EXPERIMENT NO. 16. 

The Value of Organic Plant Food. 

Clean sand contains all of the mineral plant foods, but does not contain 
organic matter. We will test the plant-producing value of organic matter 
by growing some plants in pure sand and some others in sand to which 
organic matter has been added. 

Obtain two flower pots which are near the same size. Fill one with clean 
sand, which you have burned at a high temperature for an hour or more. Fill 
the other about one-half full of the same kind of sand. Fill it the remainder 
of the way with organic matter. Mix the two kinds of soil in this pot thor- 
oughly. The organic matter which you add should be well rotted manure or 
decayed leaves, from the woods. Use whichever is the more convenient. 

Plant five or six seeds of some common plant, as corn, in each and subject 
both to the same conditions. Water as often as necessary with clean rain water 
and observe the results at the end of each week for four weeks. Write in your 
note-book the results which this experiment shows. At the close of the experi- 
ment write a brief paragraph telling the value of barnyard manure. 



Soil Improvement 61 

EXPERIMENT NO. 17. 

Water-Holding Porver of Soils. 

Let us compare the water-holding power of the four main types of soils 
in the following manner: Take four percolation bottles which will hold a 
quart each and stuff cotton in the necks of them, or, if it is more convenient, 
tie cheese-cloth around each. See Fig. 14. 

Fill each bottle one-half full of soil as follows. Into one put sand; into 
another clay; into another loam, and into the last humus. Jar each bottle 
slightly to settle the soil. Now place the bottles in the percolation rack and 
into each bottle pour one pint of water. Observe the amount of water which 
passes from the soil as free water. Which soil retains the most water ? Which 
one the least? Can you explain the results of your experiment and its value .^ 
Make a drawing of the apparatus. 

EXPERIMENT NO. 18. 

Rapidity of Percolation in Different Soils. 

The purpose of this experiment is to demonstrate the rapidity with 
which water escapes through the different types of soils. 

Obtain four bottles with the bottoms removed and tie a piece of cheese- 
cloth over the mouth of each. Fill each bottle two-thirds full of soil, using 
a different soil for each bottle. Place the bottles in a percolation rack, 
mouths downward. Pour water on each soil, a little at a time, until it begins 
to drip from the mouth of each bottle. After water is dripping from all of 
the bottles, note the amount of water which drips through in a given time, say 
four periods of five minutes each. Keep a supply of water above the soil in 
the bottles all of the time. Which soil loses the most water? Which one the 
least ? 

Ask yourself five questions about this exercise and write the answers. 
Show them to your teacher. Make a sketch of the apparatus and put it in 
your note-book. 

EXPERIMENT NO. 19. 

The Effect of Organic Matter on the Tenacity of Soils. 

Take two small pans and put some clay in each. Pour equal amounts 
of water over the clay in both pans and stir until you have a stiff batter in 



62 Soils and Fertilizers 

each pan. Into one pan put a small amount of very fine and well rotted 
humuS;, and stir until it is thoroughly mixed with the clay. Set the pans away 
for the soil to dry. When thoroughly dry break or crush the soil in each 
pan. Note the hardness of each soil. What effect does humus seem to have 
on clay.f* Write one sentence on the Value of Humus to Clay. 

REFERENCES. 

Call and Schaf er's Laboratory Manual ; published by the MacMillan Co. 

First Principles of Agriculture; by Goif and Mayne. Published by the 
American Book Co. 

Utilization of Muck Land; Regular Bulletin 273 State Agricultural Col- 
lege^ Lansings Michigan. 

Use of Fertilizers on Indiana Soils; Cir. 10, State Experiment Station, 
Lafayette, Ind. 

Mayne and Hatch, High School Agriculture; published by the American 
Book Co. 

Nolan's 100 Lessons in Agriculture; published by Row Peterson and Co. 

Plant Food in Relation to Soil Fertility; State Experiment Station, Ur- 
bana, Illinois, Cir. 157. 

Soil Fertility in Iowa; Bulletin 150, State Experiment Station, Ames, Iowa. 



Soil Improvement 63 

AGRICULTURAL APPARATUS AND HOW IT IS MADE. 

Soil Bins. 

It is very unhandy to keep soils in the schoolroom unless you have some- 
thing especially made for holding them. When soils are kept in the school- 
room they are often placed in boxes of all sizes and shapes which makes the 
room look untidy. Also this takes up a great amount of unnecessary space. It is 
much more desirable to have a row of soil bins. 

Take four boxes which are the same size and bolt them together. Be 
sure that they are good, tight boxes, so that when they are filled, soil will not 
constantly leak from them. Put legs on the boxes to hold them the desired 
height. It is well to bolt the legs to the boxes, for they will have to support 
considerable weight. Put a lid on the boxes, as shown in Fig. 2L Then paint 
the whole thing some desirable color. 

Using a different colored paint from that which you used on the boxes, 
paint on the front of each box the name of the soil which you expect to place 
in it. This will make a very attractive and useful soil box, and will prevent 
a lot of untidiness otherwise unavoidable. A box like the above, having only 
one section, makes a very good waste box. 




FIG. 21. 
Soil bin. 



A Rope or a Monhey Wrench Substituted for a Pipe Wrench. 

Oft-times the farmer has to uncouple a pipe and, without a pipe wrench, 
this presents a serious problem. However, this task can usually be accom- 
plished by the aid of a piece of rope and a short stick for a lever. Wrap the 
rope around the pipe, as shown in the illustration. Fig. 22, and it will not slip, 



64 



Soils and Fertilizers 



V 



but will grip the pipe very tightly. Now insert a stick as shown and unscrew 
the pipe. 

A monkey wrench may be used for a pipe wrench by inserting a bolt 
under the upper jaw of the wrench. The method of doing this is shown in 
Fig. 22-B. 

A Straight Edge. 
A straight edge is a very desirable thing to have around a shop^ and one 
can be made very easily. Select a clear piece of pine (five or six feet long) 

and plane one edge as straight 
as possible, testing it with the 
eye. In order to test it more 
accurately, lay it upon a smooth 
surface and mark with a pencil 
against the edge which you 
have planed. Then turn it over 
and with the same edge on the 
line which you have already 
made, mark again. These two 
lines show every defect in the 
straight edge, just twice as bad 

\M ^^H .^fllH ^^ ^^ really is. In this manner 

^kHH ^Jh^HP^ defects can easily be found. 

^H^l ^5[^HWMM|||fc|g^ Work the high places down with 

^^^1 ^^^j^^^^^^J a sharp plane and test occa- 

sionally as explained above. In 
this manner make the edge per- 
fectly straight. Such a straight 
edge will be valuable in marking boards to be ripped, or in testing work for 
straightness in the shop. 




FIG. 

(A) Rope for pipe wrench; 
wrench for pipe wrench. 



(B) Monkey 



Soil Improvement 65 

QUESTIONS AND PROBLEMS. 

1. If draining a field increased the corn crop by 12 bu., worth 40c per 

bushel, how much would the increased yield on a forty-acre field be 
worth? On how much money would this amount pay interest at 6 per 
cent ? 

2. A person bought 20 acres of land which was planted in corn. He paid 

$150 an acre for the land and corn. How much did the land alone 
cost him if the corn yielded 60 bu. per acre and he sold it for 40c 
per bu. .^ 

3. A soil weighing 80 lbs. per cubic foot absorbs five-eighths of its weight 

of water. How much water does it hold? 

4. A soil weighing 92 lbs. per cubic foot is five-eighths water. How much 

dry soil is there in a cubic foot? 

5. If 275 lbs. of moisture are required to produce 1 lb. of a corn plant, 

how much will one hill of corn require if it weighs 7^4 lbs. ? 

6. There are 43,560 sq. ft. in an acre. If we place one ton of manure on 

an acre, how much is that per square foot? 

7. One cubic foot of soil admits % cu. ft. of air. How many cubic feet 

of soil are required to contain 1 cu. ft. of air? 

8. What makes a soil hard if it is plowed too wet? 

9. Explain puddling of a soil. 

10. Why can not plants grow well in a cloddy soil? 

11. Under what condition is a soil too wet to plow? 

12. What is the value of drainage to clay soil? 

13. What is the value of humus to clay soil? 

14. What is the use of air in the soil? 

15. Why does a loam soil need care? 

16. Why is burning a humus soil a bad method of improvement? 

17. What is the advantage of giving plants plenty of room for their roots? 

18. How may we increase the water-holding power of a sandy soil? 

19. What is meant by surplus water ? 



CHAPTER V 

SOIL MOISTURE. 

Plants take water from the soil through their roots. This 
water passes directly to the leaves, and that which is not required 
by the plant is evaporated from the leaves into the air. One ton 
of dry corn crop will use during its growing period about three 
hundred tons of water. This water is obtained by the plant in 
three conditions: (1) as free water; (2) as capillary water; 
(3) as hygroscopic water. 

Free Water: Free water is that water which flows along 
beneath the surface of the soil, and is not retained by the soil 
grains. The passage of this moisture, due to its weight down 
through the soil is called percolation. (See A Fig. 23.) The 
water which flows from a tile ditch, or into a post hole is free 
water. It is oft-times called underground water. The free water 
in some soils is very close to the surface, while in others it is very 
deep. Plants can not send their roots below the level at which the 
free water is found, and this place in soils is called the water table. 
(SeeB Fig. 23.) 

If the water table or level of the free water is very near the 
surface, the plant has very little soil from which to get its food 
and cannot grow well. We drain soils, therefore, to lower the 
level of the free water. This gives the roots of the plants more 
soil from which to obtain food. We do not want the level of the 
free water to be too deep, for if it is too far down to the free 
water, the capillary water can not supply the surface soil as it 
should. 

66 



Soil Moisture 



67 



Capillary water depends upon the free water in the subsoil 
for its source of supply. The depth at which the free water or 
water table should be located in well managed soils depends upon 
the nature of the subsoil ; six feet being a maximum depth. 

Capillary Water: The water which creeps from soil grain 
to soil grain through the soil is called capillary water. The power 
by which this water is lifted from soil grain to soil grain is called 
capillary action, or capillarity. In capillary action the water 
moves just as the oil moves in a lamp wick. (C Fig. 23 shows 
capillary action.) You have no doubt observed this thing many 
times in the lamp. The oil 
which goes up through the 
wick corresponds to the cap- 
illary water in the soil, while 
the oil in the lamp cor- 
responds to the free water. 
If the free water in the soil 
is too far below the surface, 
it would be a difficult task 
for the water to climb to the 
surface as capillary water. 
The pull that the soil grains 
would exert upon the water 
would not be great enough 
to bring sufficient water to 
the surface soil to supply 
the needs of a growing plant. Near the free water the layer 
of moisture around each soil grain is very thick. But as we ap- 
proach the surface of the soil, the layers of moisture are less 
and less thick. 

Where Capillarity Is Greatest: The moisture moves upward 
in fine soils, such as clay, in much larger amounts than in coarse 
soils hke sand. This is on account of the pore spaces in the soil. 



c- 




68 



Soils and Fertilizers 



Pore space is the name given to the openings between the soil 
grains. When the pore spaces are large the water can not climb 
so high, for the layers of water, or films, become so heavy that the 
force of capillarity is soon overcome. The fact that in a fine soil 
the moisture may be lifted much farther than in a coarse soil 
accounts in part for the reason that a clay soil gives off moisture 
so much longer than a sandy soil. 

Method Of Showing Capillary Action: If you will heap up 
a pile of loose, dry soil in a pan, and pour water around the base 
of the pile, in a little while the water will have moistened all of 

the soil. The water passes from soil 
grain to soil grain until it reaches the 
top and moistens every grain. This 
capillary water is the water which the 
plant uses. The plant uses very little 
free water. 



.VAPOR 




^.jSAWOUST 



FIG. 24. 
Hygi'oscopic water. 



The water which evaporates from 
a soil is also capillary water. As fast 
as capillary water is removed from 
soil by plants, or by evaporation, more 
water is supplied, drawing upon the 
supply of free water below. There- 
fore as long as we keep the supply of 
free water deep enough that the roots 
of the plants can have sufficient room, 
and near enough to the surface to allow capillarity to bring 
the water up as fast as it is used, our water supply is well taken 
care of. 

Hygroscopic Water: When soil seems very dry it still contains 
some moisture. Even when it is so dry that plants can not live 
for want of moisture, there is some water present. This water 
exists as very fine films around each soil grain. You can easily 
show that hygroscopic moisture exists in the most thoroughly air 



Soil Moisture 69 

dried soils. To do this, take some dry soil from a field, or some 
dust from the road. Put a little of it in a test tube or vial and 
heat it gently over a flame. You will soon notice particles of 
moisture collecting near the mouth of the tube. This shows 
moisture to have been present in the soil. Hygroscopic moisture 
is of very little use to the farmer since the plants can obtain only 
a very small amount of moisture in this form. 

Fig. 24 shows sawdust that was obtained from a well seasoned 
board, giving oiF moisture. This sawdust would have seemed 
perfectly dry to the touch, yet the experiment shows that it con- 
tained some moisture. 

Soil Mulches To Conserve Water: A soil mulch is a layer 
of loose soil over the more compact soil. (See Fig. 23.) The 
more compact the soil is, the better it conducts water to the 
surface. If we break up and pulverize a few inches of top soil 
capillarity is checked in its upward movement when it reaches 
this point. Since the moisture must get in contact with the air 
before it evaporates, and since a mulch prevents this, the moisture 
evaporates but slowly. Producing a mulch is the most valuable 
thing we can do after each rain in order to keep the moisture 
in the ground where the plants can use it. This should be done 
as soon as the soil is fit to work. 

Most farmers pay no regard to weather conditions when cul- 
tivating their crops. They go over their corn one or four times, 
whichever their standard of excellence is, paying no attention to 
whether their mulch has been destroyed or not. As long as the 
soil mulch is not destroyed in a cultivated field plowing is of 
very little value. Cultivating a field of growing crops at the 
correct time to save the moisture which falls or is present, is of 
as much importance as any of the other operations which the 
farmer performs. Later you will have some experiments which 
show you how well a soil mulch checks the loss of capillary water. 



70 



Soils and Fertilizers 



The Water Holding Capacity of Soils: The amount of 
water which a soil can hold is determined by the amount of sur- 
face area in that soil. The finer the particles of which a soil 
is composed the more surface area there will be. (See Fig. 25.) 




FIG. 25. 
Pore space and water holding power of soils. 



Therefore a coarse sandy soil will not have as much surface area as 
a fine soil, and consequently will not hold as much water. In fact, 
a sandy soil when saturated (filled with water) will hold only 
about 16 lbs. of water per cu. ft., while a- pure himius soil will 



Soil Moisture 71 

hold 26 lbs. per cu. ft. ; the other soils hold amounts varying be- 
tween these extremes. Fig. 25 shows different arrangements of 
soil grains. 

But we do not want our soils to be saturated with water, for 
this keeps out the air. We are not interested so much in the 
amount of water a cu. ft. of soil will hold when saturated, as 
we are interested in the amount of capillary water it will retain. 
All the water which remains after percolation has ceased is called 
capillary water. This includes hygroscopic water. As capillary 
water is found on the surface of the soil grains the greater 
the amount of surface in a soil the greater amount of capillary 
water it will hold. A fine soil not only has more soil particles, but 
more surface than a coarse soil, therefore, we may say that a fine 
soil will retain more capillary moisture than a coarse one. Obvi- 
ously then a soil which will contain a great deal of capillary 
moisture, and with a water table that will permit of a constant 
supply of water, is a very desirable soil. 

The Conservation Of Soil Moisture: The saving of soil 
moisture is a very important problem to the farmer, for possibly 
no one thing limits the average crop so often as the shortage of 
water. It is estimated that for each ton of mature crop pro- 
duced on an acre four inches of rain has been consumed. If 
five tons of material is harvested from an acre, twenty inches of 
rain has been required by that crop. In many localities very 
little more than this amount falls during an entire year, and in 
many places there is much less than this amount. 

When we remember that the greatest amount of our moisture 
is received during the seasons v/hen the plants are not growing, 
and that a large part of the water which the soil receives is 
lost by evaporation, we begin to see the importance of saving 
all of the water we can. 



72 Soils and Fertilizers 

The best means of saving moisture are cultivation and drain- 
age. Most of the moisture that is lost from the soil is lost by evap- 
oration. The water is brought to the surface by capillarity, and is 
then evaporated into the air and lost. If after the rain falls the 
surface of the soil is stirred so that capillarity is stopped the 
water remains in the soil and is not lost. 

REFERENCES. 

Simple Exercise Illustrating Some Applications of Chemistry to Agricul- 
ture. United States Department of Agriculture, Farmers' Bulletin 195. 

Practical Agriculture, by Wilkinson. Published by the American Book Co. 

Davis, Productive Farming; published by the Lippincott Publishing Co. 



Soil Moisture 73 

^^ EXPERIMENT NO. 20. 

Effect of Soils on the Absorption of Substances from Solution. 

We have learned that clay soils are richer in plant food than sandy soils. 
When water dissolves the plant foods as it passes through the soil it takes this 
plant food away unless something retains it. Fine particles of soil absorb this 
plant food from the water and retain it for the use of the plants. 

Let us prove by an experiment that a fine soil does retain more of this 
plant food than a coarse soil. To do this we will have to pour water over the 
soils and have in this water a substance which we can see. Color some water 
red by adding red ink or by adding some aniline dye. You can obtain this 
at any drug store in packages as Diamond Dyes, etc. Do not make the water 
too red. Add only enough dye to color the water distinctly. Take two per- 
colation bottles and tie cloth over the mouths of each or plug them with cotton. 
Put them in the percolation rack and pour a little sand in one and a little 
clay in the other. Now pour a quantity of the colored solution into each 
bottle and collect the water which drips through. Use as many more soils 
as you care to in this test. 

Which soil permits the most color to pass through } As rain water passes 
through different kinds of soil, from which will it carry the most plant food ? 
Would it be a good plan to apply fertilizers to a sandy soil? What would 
happen to the fertilizers if it rained? 

Make a drawing of the apparatus in your note-book. Use colored 
crayons to show the difference in the color of the water as it comes from the 
different soils. In your drawing label each bottle to show what kind of soil 
it contained. 

EXPERIMENT NO. 21. 

Capillarity. 

The capillary rise of water/ as has been explained, depends upon the 
number and size of the pore spaces in the soil. In the following experiment 
you will expect the clay to lift more water than the sand. It will at first not 
appear to do so, although this is in fact what it does. The water which passes 
upward through the clay soil is covering more surface area than the water 
which passes through the sand. It moves upward slower at first, because the 
soil grains are so much closer together. In the sand the soil grains are far 
apart, and the water climbs rapidly. If you were to take long steps you would 
travel more rapidly than if you took the same number of short steps. The 



74 



Soils and Fertilisers 



water in the clay takes short steps while that in the sand takes long ones. If 
your columns of clay and sand are high enough at the end of a day or two 
you will find that the moisture has traveled farther in the clay than in the 
sand, although the sand was ahead at first. Try to bring out the above facts 
in your experiment. (See Fig. 26.) 

Take four percolation bottles and cover the mouth of each with cheese- 
cloth, or plug them with cotton. Fill each with a different kind of soil. Clay, 
sand, loam and humus are good ones to use. Place the bottles in the percola- 
tion rack so that the mouth of each bottle almost touches the bottom of a 

tumbler. Pour the same amount of water into 
each tumbler and keep the level of the water 
above the mouth of each bottle. 

Measure the height to which the water rises 
in the bottles at intervals of ten minutes each. 
Write the results in your note-book and explain 
why the moisture behaves as it does in each soil. 
Note how much water is removed from each 
tumbler and tell which soil takes up the most 
water in a given length of time. 

EXPERIMENT NO. 22. 

Distance Capillarity Will Lift Water. 

We have shown in a previous experiment 
how water passes up through a soil by means 
of capillarity. You will find, however, that 
capillarity will not lift water a very great dis- 
tance. 

In order to see how far water may sink in 
a soil before it is lost to the plants — -that is, so 
capillarity cannot bring it back again — we will 
perform the following experiment: 




FIG. 26. 
Capillary tubes in use. 



Obtain a glass tube of large bore about 1 inch in diameter and 6 or 7 feet 
long. If this is not to be had, ordinary glass tubing connected with pieces 
of rubber tubing will serve. Tie a piece of cheese-cloth over one end of the 
tube and fill the tube with finely pulverized dry clay soil. This soil must be 
well packed if it represents ordinary field conditions. Immerse one end of 
the tube in a pan of water and let the apparatus stand from 8 to 10 days. 



Soil Moisture 75 

Record the height to which water rises in the tube at the end of this time. 
This will show you how high capillarity will lift water in a clay soil. Any 
water which sinks below this depth is lost to the plants. In a clay soil this 
depth will reach to about 6 feet. If you have the apparatus it would be well 
to test loam^ sand, etc., for capillarity. 

This experiment will help you to understand drainage, which will be 
taken up in another chapter. It will also help you to understand how plants 
live during the dry summer months. Find out all you can about the depth 
of the water table in your locality at various seasons of the year. 

Write a discussion, "The Underground Supply of Plant Moisture." 

EXPERIMENT NO. 23. 

The Three Kinds of Moisture in the Soil. 

The purpose of this experiment is to classify the various kinds of 
moisture in the soil, so that we may know what we are trying to save by 
tillage. To perform this experiment, obtain a percolation bottle, a pint of 
loam soil, some cheese-cloth and a pair of balances. 

Tie a cloth over the mouth of the percolation bottle. Put into it about a 
pint of loam soil, and j ar slightly to settle it. Now add water until it begins 
to drip from the mouth of the bottle. This water is free water. 

After the water stops dripping, remove the soil from the bottle. Weigh 
it. Spread it out and let dry until there seems to be no more moisture 
present. Weigh again. The loss in weight is capillary water. Put the dry 
soil in a dish and heat it in an oven for an hour or two. The heat should not 
be above the boiling point of water. Cool and weigh again. The loss of 
weight is hygroscopic moisture. 

What kind of water is most valuable to crops ? 

Can the farmer control any of these forms of soil water? 

Take 2 small bottles of the same size and put in one the amount of 
capillary water which was in your pint of soil. In the other place the amount 
of hygroscopic water that was present. 

Make a drawing of the two bottles in your note-book, and show by com- 
parison the amount of each kind of water in the sample of soil tested. 

Hygroscopic water may also be shown by taking a dry piece of wood 
and heating it in a test tube as shown previously, Fig. 24. The moisture which 
collects at the mouth of the test tube is hygroscopic water. In your note- 
book write a definition of hygroscopic water; of free water; of capillary water. 



76 



Soils and Fertilizers 



EXPERIMENT NO. 24. 

Water Consumed by a Plant. 

We have mentioned the fact that plants consume large quantities of 
water, so let us perform a simple experiment to demonstrate this fact. Take 
two clean glass tumblers or fruit jars, and pour exactly the same amount of 
water in each. Carefully dig up a healthy bunch of red clover or some other 
hardy plant so as not to injure its roots. Wash the soil from the roots and 
then immerse them in one of the tumblers of water. See Fig. 27. Mark the 







FIG. 27. 
Water consumed by a plant. 



height of the water in each tumbler by pasting a piece of paper on the out- 
side, even with the surface of the water. Place the tumblers in the window 
side by side. 

When the plant begins to wilt, possibly at the end of two or three days, 
remove and notice the water lost. What has become of the water that has 
left the tumbler which contained no plant? How much more has gone from 
the tumbler which contained the plant? Account for the difference in the 
amounts removed from the two tumblers. 



Soil Moisture 77 

AGRICULTURAL APPARATUS AND HOW IT IS MADE. 

Dirt Band. 

In removing plants from a hotbed to outdoor beds the sudden change of 
conditions is likely to kill them. In order to make this change a little more 
gradual, a cold framC;, which is very similar to a hotbed, but kept at a much 
lower temperature, is often used. When we place plants in such a cold 
frame, it is well to place each in a separate receptacle, so that when they are 
to be transplanted for the last time no roots will be torn or removed and the 




FIG. 28. 
A Dirt Band. 



plant will receive no setback. The most convenient way to do this is by 
means of dirt bands. The dirt bands should be made of heavy paper and 
of any desired size. Fig. 28 shows one 3 inches in diameter. This is a very 
good size, but a smaller one will serve as well. 

A double thickness of newspaper serves as a bottom, the band being filled 
with soil and placed on the newspaper. One plant is set in each band, and 
when removed to the garden the soil and band are both taken and set. The 
paper soon decays and the plant has been transplanted without the loss of a 
single root. To make this dirt band, lay out a figure on heavy paper the same 
as shown in Plate 3, except the part below line E. F. This part is left out 
entirely. Put it together and your work is complete. You might make one as 
shown in Fig. 28 if you prefer it. 



78 



Soils and Fertilisers 



Flat for GrOTving Plants. 
When plants are transplanted from the hotbed they are usually planted 
in flats. Oft-times the seeds are sown directly in the flats. A flat is a box 
3 inches deep^ 15 inches wide and 20 inches long, inside measurements. Such 
a flat may be made as follows: 

Use soft wood one inch thick for the sides of the flat. Cut and put 
together as shown in Fig. 29, using 6d nails. Use one-half inch material for 
the bottom. This material should be narrow. Wide boards warp until the 
soil leaks out at the bottom. When nailing on the bottom boards do not put 
them against one another too tight. If you do, when they become wet they 
will swell and bulge away from the frame. 



OETA/L'S OF A 
SO/L rLAT 




.ri»»!»*.jiua.aiMa^b>.sPidJi^.^Jr^-^iWJ^^ 



FIG. 29. 
A soil flat. 



Use the flat in your experiments in growing plants. It would be very 
interesting and profitable if. you could grow some early cabbage or tomato 
plants to be taken home and planted when the weather becomes warm. Place 
a layer of paper in the bottom of the flat before putting in the soil. This 
will prevent any soil from leaking from the box. 



Soil Moisture 



79 



Line Winder. 
A line winder is a very valuable little article around the farm garden 
where laying off the rows across the garden is accomplished by means ot 
string The drawing shown on Fig. 30 makes a very good winder. Use any 




FIG. 30. 
A line winder. 

kind of wood for this work. Soft wood given a coat of varnish when com- 
pleted is very good. This line winder may be fastened on a stake as shown, 
if it is to be used a great deal in the garden. Fig. 2, Plate 2 shows a neat 
line winder. 



80 Soils and Fertilisers 

QUESTIONS AND PROBLEMS. 

1. A cubic foot of soil contains 30 lbs. of moisture; 18% of it is free water 

and the remainder is capillary water. How many pounds of capillary 
water does it contain? 

2. If water dissolves 10^000 lbs. of plant food from the surface foot of a 

soil in one week^ how much would it dissolve per day.'' How much 
would it dissolve in an hour.'' 

3. At the above rate, how much plant food would water dissolve from the 

first 6 inches of a soil in one day? In one hour? 

4. Eighty-four per cent of the substance in a soil will not be dissolved by 

water. How many pounds of soluble material in a cubic foot of clay 
weighing 80 lbs.? 

6. If 2% inches of rainfall dissolves 260 lbs. of a plant food from the gar- 
den soil, how much rainfall will be required to dissolve 600 lbs. of 
plant food? 

6. If 309.8 tons of water in a crop denoted a rainfall of 2.6 inches, how 

much rainfall would 452.8 tons of water in a crop denote? 

7. A sandy soil having a water-holding power of 18% weighs 110 lbs. per 

cubic foot when dry. How many pounds of water will it hold? 

8. A clay soil weighing 80 lbs. per cubic foot when dry has a water- 

holding capacity of 26%. How many pounds of water does it hold? 

9. If a corn crop is able to reduce the water in a soil from 18% to 4%, 

how many pounds will it remove from a cubic foot of soil? 

10. If a corn crop is able to reduce the amount of moisture in a clay soil 

from 26% to 12%, how much water will it remove from a cubic foot 
of soil? 

11. Name the different forms of water in a soil. 

12. Which form of water is used most by the growing plant? 

13. What becomes of the moisture taken up by a plant? 

14. What effect does compacting a soil have upon capillarity? 

15. What kind of soil holds the most capillary moisture? 

16. What is capillary water? 

17. What is meant by "Water Table?" 

18. How may we test soil for hygroscopic water? - 



CHAPTER VI 

DRAINAGE. 

A Plant" s Problem: A plant on an undrained soil has a very 
hard time trying to obtain the correct moisture conditions for 
its growth. Early in the spring the rainfall is usually so great 
that the plant is surrounded by too much water. Later in the 
season the soil becomes very dry. In order to live, the plant 
must adapt itself to each of these conditions which it does only 
with great effort and usually with a small amount of growth. 
Moisture conditions may be made much more desirable for the 
plants, as well as more convenient for the farmer by proper 
drainage. 

A Wet Soil: A wet soil in the spring makes the farmer late 
with his spring plowing, thus causing his crops to get a late start. 
Such a soil is always cold so that when the plants are started, 
they do not grow well. Before a farmer can cultivate a wet soil, 
the weeds get a start and are then very hard to overcome. 

The roots of a plant in a wet soil have a small chance to ob- 
tain the air which they need, and oft-times can be seen growing 
above the ground, trying to escape the extra water. Therefore, 
unless we drain the soil so that it will rid itself of this extra 
moisture, our ordinary plants will have a very poor chance to 
grow successfully. 

The Value of Drainage: The only way to remove surplus 
water from a field that is practically level is by drainage. The 
drainage of such a soil admits air to the roots of the plants. It 
deepens the layer of soil from which the roots can obtain food. 
In time of drought, plants growing in a well drained soil do not 

81 



82 



Soils and Fertilizers 



suffer for moisture as much as plants growing in an undrained 
soil. 

Good drainage permits of early tillage and increases the plant 
food in the soil. 

Another important point to be considered in draining the 
soil is that a well drained soil becomes warm earlier in the spring, 
giving the plants a better chance to grow. 

Drainage Gives Roots More Room: If a soil is undrained 
the water usually sinks only a short distance below the surface. 




If we dig down a few feet we find that the soil is completely 
filled with water. This water level, as we have learned, is called 
the water table and in an undrained soil it lies very near the sur- 
face, especially in the spring and fall. Since the roots of a plant 
will not grow below this water table, they have only a very little 
room for growth in such a soil. By draining this same soil the 



Drainage 



83 



roots will penetrate deeply, and when the dry days of summer 
come the great network of roots is able to obtain water by cap- 
illarity. Therefore the plants do not suffer so much for moisture 
as they would have suffered if the soil had not been drained. 
Fig. 31 shows an undrained field. 

Drainage Increases Weathering Action: To show what water 
does in a soil let us notice what happens to a solid lump of sugar 
if placed in a tumbler of water. The sugar first crumbles from 

a solid mass into a larger 
number of fine particles. 
Finally if there is not too 
much sugar it will disappear 
altogether. This is called 
"going into solution." When 
water passes through a soil 
it is treating the soil just as 
it treated the sugar. It is 
breaking down the large soil 
particles and carrying away 
with it much plant food and 
also much that is poisonous 
to plants. No difference how much water a plant had if some 
water did not pass through the soil and carry away plant poisons 
with it, the plant could not live long. 

Drainage Raises the Soil Temperature: Through the winter 
the ground remains frozen and filled with water. If the ground 
is undrained, when spring comes, this cold water remains in the 
soil for a long time. This water becomes heated very slowly, 
so that the soil is cold until late. If such a soil is drained, 
however, the warm spring rains soak into the soil taking the 
place of the cold water which the drain removes. This change 
of water increases the temperature very rapidly, and such a soil 
becomes warm much earlier than an undrained soil. Also in 
an undrained soil the water escapes by evaporation at the surface 




Drainage 



FIG. 32. 
rives roots more room. 



84 Soils and Fertilisers 

and the evaporation of this water makes the soil cold. Drainage 
would be worth while for the difference it makes in soil tem- 
perature if it did no other thing. 

Indications That Drainage Is Needed: All good land should 
be well drained, either naturally or by artificial means. In most 
cases it is only partially drained naturally, and in some cases 
not at all. If the subsoil is very loose and open, nature has re- 
lieved us from concerning ourselves about the drainage of such 
land. In some places the surface is so hilly that rainfall is 
almost all carried away at or near the surface. Such a soil would 
not need tile drainage. 



"tj^ 



Almost always a soil which needs drainage is weedy. Weeds 
have adapted themselves to conditions under which cultivated 
plants can not live, and if we find a field where our common 
plants are crowded out year after year by weeds we can rest 
assured that such a soil needs drainage. 



^^y 



If we find mosses and sedges growing on a soil, it indicates 
the need for drainage. A soil which is undrained will generally 
refuse to produce a crop of clover, on account of the injurious 
substances which are left at the surface by the evaporation of 
moisture. Therefore, if a soil will not produce a clover crop, 
drainage is one of the first things that should be looked to for 
the failure. 

Drainage Prevents Heaving: Crops can not thrive on a soil 
that becomes filled with water. In winter the freezing water in 
the soil expands, forcing the soil grains upward, for that is the 
only way they can move. When the ice melts the soil grains 
settle close together again. Each time that this happens the 
roots of the plant are lifted a little farther out of the ground. 
This breaks off all of the fine rootlets which are so necessary for 
the plant. When there is considerable freezing and thawing dur- 
ing a winter, plants are lifted almost entirely out of an undrained 



Drainage 



85 



soil. It is absolutely impossible for them to live under such 
conditions, and the only way such a soil can be made valuable 
is by drainage. The accompanying illustration, Fig. 33, shows 
what happens as a result of the heaving of the soil. Many 
farmers have tried to grow alfalfa on this kind of soil. Can you 
see why they have failed? 

History of Drains: People have long realized the need of 
drains, but until rather recent j^ears no permanent methods were 
devised for successfully draining a soil. The open ditch was 




PIG. 33. 

The stakes in the above picture were driven with their tops even with the surface 
of the ground in the fall. The winter's freezing and thawing lifted them almost entirely 
out of the ground. Do you see why plants cannot thrive in such a soil? 



the only method used for a long time, but such a ditch took 
up a great deal of room and was always needing repair. So 
men began to search for something better to serve as a drain. 
When this necessity for drainage was first realized in America, 
hollow tile were not to be had. Instead men tried to make 
drains by burying bunches of poles, end to end. The spaces 
between the poles left open places where the water could pass 



86 Soils and Fertilisers 

and such drains were all right until the poles rotted. To over- 
come this difficulty the idea of taking the rocks which had to be 
removed from the fields and making drains of them was started. 
Men dug open ditches, placed a few layers of boulders and rocks 
in the bottom of them and then filled them with soil. The stones 
like the poles left spaces, through which the water could flow. 
Such drains worked very well. Later the use of hollow tile was 
adopted. 

Hollow Tile For Underground Drains: The first burned 
clay tile used here were shipped to America from Scotland. 
Most people made fun of them and said that they would ruin 
the soil in which they were placed. The average farmer at that 
time and for a long time after could see no use or value in drain- 
age. For this reason and on account of the expense the use of 
tile drains was very slow in being adopted. At the present time 
the value of drainage is well recognized, and although still ex- 
pensive, excellent systems of drains are placed on all of the more 
modern farms. 

Hollow tile were almost entirely made of burned clay until 
quite recently. Large quantities of them are now made of con- 
crete. Larger tile are made of concrete than it is possible to make 
of burned clay. However, the smaller tile can still be made 
cheaper from burned clay than from concrete. 

How Drainage is Accoiiiplished: All moisture leaves the soil 
either by passing over the soil or through it. That moisture 
which passes over a field without soaking into the soil is said 
to have been removed by surface drainage. In the spring, when 
the rainfall is heavy, a great amount of water runs off of a field 
as surface water. This water not only does no good, but it does 
a great deal of damage. It carries as sediment a great number 
of fine soil grains which, as has been mentioned, are the best 
part of the farmer's field. After a flood or a heavy rain you 
often see quantities of rich black soil along the roadsides. This 



Drainage 87 

is valuable plant food which has been washed from the neighbor- 
ins- fields. The water which runs off of a field as surface water 
does not help to decay or break up the subsoil, which is one 
great thing that water does in the soil. 

Possibly the greatest advantage of having water seep through 
a soil, and flow through a drain is the fact that it dissolves and 
carries away many poisonous and injurious substances called 
salts, which are continually accumulating in the soil. Just as 
water is used in your home to wash away undesirable dirt, so 
it behaves in the soil by removing these poisonous substances. 
As mentioned previously, plants can not live very long where 
there is no passage of water through the soil. For the above 
reasons it is much better to have the water which falls pass 
through the soil, rather than over it. 

Underground Drainage By Covered Drains: Underground 
drainage has to do with all water which passes through the soil 
and is removed through some underground outlet. Underground 
drainage takes place naturally in most soils, but in many soils it 
is not as effective as it should be. In order that underground 
drainage shall be more effective, the farmer is oft-times com- 
pelled to supply some artificial drainage. 

Percolation (seeping of water) as you know depends upon 
the structure of the soil. If the soil or subsoil is hard and packed 
the water gets through very slowly. In such soils the drains must 
be close together to remove the extra water from all parts of the 
soil. If, on the other hand, the subsoil is coarse and open the 
water can percolate very rapidly and it needs no drainage. The 
rapidity with which water is able to percolate through a soil 
determines the depth to which we can place our underground 
drains, as well as the value of both open and closed drainage 
systems. 

Drainage By Means of Open Ditches: Drainage by means 
of small, open ditches is rapidly going out of existence. This 



88 Soils and Fertilizers 

is as it should be, for open ditches are a nuisance to any farmer; 
besides it is expensive to maintain them. The ground which an 
open ditch occupies will yield larger returns if replaced by a 
covered drain and tilled. Open drains scatter weed seed and 
cause work and worry each year. The expense of all this is ul- 
timately greater than the cost of tiling such a ditch. 

Some farmers maintain that the open ditch is very valuable 
as a source of water supply for live stock. However, in this 
respect, tile drains may be made even more valuable than open 
drains. By leaving a small runway down to the water and then 
leaving out a few tile, stock can obtain water as long as water 
flows through the drain. If this is done the earth may be dug 
out a little below the tile, and clean gravel put in its place. The 
ends of the open tile should be screened so that nothing injurious 
will get into the openings to clog the drain. Such an arrange- 
ment makes a more convenient and cleaner watering place than 
can possibly be obtained by an open ditch. 

A tile drain, unlike an open drain, compels the water to pass 
through the soil, and, as has been stated, this is a decided advan- 
tage. However some subsoils are so hard that water is unable 
to soak through. Where such a soil exists, open drains must be 
used until the structure of the subsoil is modified. 

Laying a Drain: The tile used in laying a drain should be 
strong and well burned. A cracked or damaged tile should not 
be used, for it is sure to give trouble at sometime. If a tile will 
not make a good joint on account of a broken or crooked edge it 
should not be used. If it is used the joint should, at least, be 
protected with a piece of a broken tile. 

It is poor economy to use for drainage a tile less than 4 inches 
in diameter. Tile smaller than this dimension are easy to clog 
and do not perform as much service as they should. It costs 
but very little more to use larger tile and they can be relied upon 
to give more and better service. In laying a drain great care 



Drainage 89 

should be exercised to get the tile in line, for any places where 
the tile do not join properly furnish spaces for dirt to lodge 
and clog the drain. This is especially true of the small tile. 

Distance Apart and Size of Drains: The distance of drains 
from each other and the depth at which they should be placed 
depends upon the character of the soil. On light porous soils 
they should be deeper and farther apart; on heavy soils they 
should be close together and near the surface. Tile 4 inches in 
diameter laid three or four feet deep, from 80 to 100 feet apart, 
under ordinary conditions, make a very good drainage system. 
In laying out a drain provision should be made for a fall of at 
least 2 inches in 100 feet. Less than this amount is undesirable, 
and less than 1 inch to 100 feet is unsatisfactory. It is best 
to obtain the services of a drainage engineer if the fall is slight 
and the drainage system complex. For ordinary work a farmer 
who can use a level should be able to lay out the drain. 

Laying out a tile drain and figuring the fall which it should 
have presents a practical problem, which would make a very 
good field exercise for a class. 

Staking for a Drain : Take a number ( a dozen or more ) 
stakes, one inch square and three or four feet long, an axe, a 
level, a tape line and a ten or twelve foot straight edge, to a field 
that has an open stream running through it. 

Go to a portion of the field that is quite distant from the 
stream and there start your tile ditch. First drive a stake to 
mark this point (the source). Then go down along the stream 
and near the water's edge drive another stake which is to show 
where the end (outlet) of your drain is to be. Now proceed as 
follows : 

About ten feet from the stake at the source of the proposed 
drain drive another stake in direct line between it and the one 
at the outlet. In a like manner at regular intervals (say fifty 



90 Soils and Fertilizers 

yards) drive the remainder of the stakes, being sure to keep 
them in line with the first two driven. 

Now get the first stake driven (the one at the source) straight 
up and down and rigid. To do this you may have to drive it 
farther into the ground. Then drive the stake, which is ten feet 
away from this one, down until the tops of the two stakes are 
exactly level. You can tell when they are correct by laying the 
straight edge across the two stakes and testing with the level. 
After the first two stakes are perfectly level, have a boy sight 
over the tops of them, while another boy makes pencil marks on 
all of the rest of the stakes. These marks should be made at a 
height which the person sighting designates as being level with 
the stakes over which he is sighting. When all of the stakes 
are marked except the two over which the sighting was done, we 
are ready to establish the depths. This can be very easily done. 

First decide how deep the drain should be at the mouth. 
Usually a short distance above the water in the open ditch is 
about the right height for the outlet of the closed drain. Measure 
the distance from the line on the stake at the outlet, to the depth 
you want the bottom of the drain ; for illustration, say seven feet. 
Write this depth on the stake. 

Now if you want a fall of one inch in one hundred feet, for 
example, and your next stake is one hundred and fifty feet away, 
the distance from the line on that stake to the bottom of the 
drain will be one and one-half inches less than seven feet, or six 
feet ten and one-half inches. Write this number on the second 
stake. You can readily see that it would be one and one-half 
inches less to the bottom of the drain here than it would be fifty 
yards farther down. 

In a like manner put the correct figures on all of the rest of 
the stakes. The figures on each stake show the distance from the 
line on that stake to the bottom of the ditch. This work should 
require several recitations and the drain should be designed on 



Drainage 



91 



paper as well as laid out in the field. The drain should be so 
laid out that it would do its full share of work if it were con- 
structed. 

How Water and Air Get Into a Drain: The water enters a 
tile at the joints, and does not seep through the tile as is popu- 
larly supposed. For this reason, we need to have good joints 
(but not watertight) to prevent the water from carrying dirt 
into the drain. We have stated that the air which gets into a 
soil through a drain is one of the benefits of a drain. 




FIG. 34. 
How water and air get into a drain. 



In order that a tile drain may admit a great deal of air to a 
soil, it is best to have the source of a line of tile open to the air. 
This can be accomplished by standing tile on end at or near 
the source of a drain and letting the top tile come just above the 
surface of the soil. This tile should be screened to prevent rab- 
bits, etc., from getting into the drain. It is best brought to the 
surface along a fence, or at some place where it will not be in the 
way of farming operations. Such an arrangement at the source 
of a drain permits a free flow of air through the drain thus 
aerating the surrounding soil to a great extent. 



92 Soils and Fertilizers 

Soils That Should Have Drainage: There is always a doubt 
in the farmer's mind about the advisabihty of putting an under- 
ground drain in his field. While the special conditions of every 
field must be considered before we can know positively regarding 
that field, yet the following is a list of places where it is almost 
always wise to put a tile drain: 

(1) Flat lands along streams that overflow in the spring. 
On such lands we must lower the level of the water in the soil 
as soon as possible after the overflow. If we do not drain such 
a soil we can not get our crops planted early, or save any crops 
that may have been planted before the overflow. 

(2) Flat land having a clayey subsoil. On such a land nat- 
ural drainage can not take place, so artificial drainage must be 
supplied. 

(3) Low places or valleys in hilly land. The water must 
be drained from such places to remove the extra water that flows 
from the higher land all around. 

(4) Swamps and Marshes. Such places are wet almost all 
year and unless drained they are of little value. When such soils 
are properly drained they oft-times make our very best soil. 



Drainage 
EXPERIMENT NO. 25. 



93 



:p 



Effect of Lime on Turbid Water. 

A clay soil will become more open and in better condition if it contains 
lime. This lime unites with the carbon dioxide of the air and flocculates (sticks 
together) the clay soil particles. A very excellent experiment for showing the 
action of lime on clay may be performed as follows: 

Stir a tablespoonful of clay with a pint of water. Let stand a moment 
and then fill two glass vessels with the muddy water. Glass tumblers or 
beakers are very good for this purpose. 
Into one of the glass vessels put a 
teaspoonful of lime and shake or stir 
it thoroughly. Leave the second vessel 
untreated^ except to stir thoroughly. 
Let both vessels stand and observe 
them every few seconds to note any 
changes that may occur. Explain what 
happens. Account for this change. 
Write a discussion upon the value of 
lime. (See Fig. 35.) 



EXPERIMENT NO. 26. 

The Effect of Lime on Soils. 

Take two pans and make a stiff bat- 
ter in each by stirring clay and water 
together. Have the pans of clay to 
the same degree of stickiness^ as nearly 
as possible. Now stir a tablespoonful 
of lime in one of the vessels, adding 
a trifle more water if necessary. Stir 
until the lime is thoroughly mixed with 
the soil. 




FIG. 35. 
The effect of lime on turbid water. 
Muddy water to which Ume was added. 
Muddy water without lime. 



Leave the other pan of soil untreated and set both pans aside to dry. 
Place them where they will get as much sunshine as possible. When thor- 
oughly dry, break or crush the two pans of soil and note the relative hardness 
of each. Explain in your note-book the results of your experiment. 



94 



Soils and Fertilizers 



EXPERIMENT NO. 27. 
Effect of Drainage Upon Plant Grorvth. 

Obtain two tin cans, and with a nail punch holes in the bottom of one of 
them. These holes will provide drainage. Fill both cans with rich soil and 
moisten the soil until it is saturated. Plant 5 to 10 seeds in each can, and 
cover them about 1 inch deep. Label and set aside, water them regularly and 
alike for a week, examining occasionally to note progress. Describe in writ- 
ing the value of drainage upon germination. 





A B 

FIG. 36. 
A — Hard puddled clay soil without lime. 
B — The same soil after having lime added, and being exposed to winter weather. 



EXPERIMENT NO. 28. 
Temperature of Drained and Undrained Soils. 

Obtain two tin cans, and with a nail punch holes in the bottom of one 
of them. Fill both cans with rich soil and saturate each soil with moisture. 
Leave both cans exposed to the air for a day. At the end of a day insert a 
thermometer into each soil and observe the temperature. Take readings every 
hour for several hours. What can you say of the temperature of a drained 
soil compared with an undrained soil? 



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PLATE 6. 

95 



96 



Soils and Fertilizers 



AGRICULTURAL APPARATUS AND HOW IT IS MADE. 

Specimen Case for Exhibit of Plant Foods. 

The case shown in the picture below is a very valuable addition to a school 
laboratory and furnishes also a very excellent Manual Training Lesson. The 
case may be used to hold different kinds of soils ; to hold seeds ; to display cereal 
products ; diseased animal or plant tissue ; and, in fact, a very elaborate display 
can readily be collected for use in such a cabinet. The making of this cabinet 




FIG. 37. 
Specimen case opened. 

involves the principles of making a simple box. The drawing on the opposite 
page, Plate 6, gives an idea of how the case is made. Seven-eighths-inch ma- 
terial is used and the inside is arranged to accommodate the bottles to the best 
advantage possible. This arrangement depends largely upon the size and 
shape of the bottles used. The picture above shows a very good method for 
arranging the display bottles. (Fig. 37.) 

Before beginning the work on this case make a detailed drawing of the 
inside of each section, showing just how and where every bottle will go. 
When your drawing is complete submit it to your teacher for his approval. 



Drainage 97 

The metal handles and the corners should be made entirely by the student. 
Sheet iron will do for the corners, but sheet brass gives the work a much better 
appearance. The handles may be made of either metal or leather. 

Finish the case with stain and shellac. It may require several coats of 
shellac to get a satisfactory polish, but regardless of the labor required, the 
case should be well polished before it is used as an exhibit case. 

Mount for Small Samples. 

The mounting of a few seeds or a few types of soil may be neatly done 
as follows: 

Obtain a one-fourth-inch board of the desired size and smooth both sides. 
Bore one-half inch or three-fourths inch holes equal distances apart in rows 
across the board. Sandpaper one side of the board until it is clean, and give it 
two coats of shellac or varnish. When dry, near each hole which you have 
bored, write the name of the seed or soil you intend to place in that hole. 
See Plate 6 on opposite page. 

Now obtain a piece of glass the same size as the board, and with passe- 
partout paper, or tape, bind the glass to the face of the board. Then place 
the board and glass face side down and fill each hole with a thin layer of 
the specimens. Plug the holes with felt or pasteboard, and cover the entire 
back by pasting felt over it. This will give you a very permanent and con- 
venient mount. Details of a very conveniently arranged mount are shown on 
the opposite page, Plate 6. 



98 Soils and Fertilisers 

QUESTIONS AND PROBLEMS. 

1. What is the circumference of a tile 4 inches in diameter? 

2. How much will a tile hold 4 inches in diameter and 16 inches long? 

3. How many tiles 18 inches long will be required to lay a drain 4 rds. long? 

4. If a ditch has a fall of 12 ft. in 1 mile, how much fall per 1,000 ft.? 

5. If water soaks into the soil at the rate of 6 inches per hour, how many 

hours will it take for the water to reach a ditch 8 ft. below the surface? 

6. An open ditch is 18 ft. wide at the top. How many rows of corn, planted 

48 inches apart, could be planted on this space if the ditch were cov- 
ered, and the rows started 3 ft. from one side? Make a drawing to 
show this. 

7. A man has to travel 100 yds. out of his way to cross a ditch at the 

bridge. How many feet would he have to travel if he crossed the 
bridge 100 times? How many miles? 

8. Supposing that drainage of a field would double the crop, if a 40-acre 

field produced 20 bu. of corn per acre worth 60c per bushel before it 
was drained, how much would drainage be worth per year? 

9. If 12c per foot is to be paid for a tile drain, what would it cost to lay 

a drain 80 rds. long? 

10. What is one of the plant's greatest difficulties? 

11. Name 4 disadvantages of a wet soil. 

12. Give 6 advantages of drainage. 

13. How does drainage help plants during dry weather? 

14. How can you tell when drainage is needed? 

15. Mention some soils that should be drained. 

16. What is heaving? 

17. What causes tile to clog? 

18. How does water get into a tile drain? 



THE STORY OF TILLAGE. 

There is an ancient myth of a father^ who on his death bed 
called his three sons. When they had gathered at his side he said: 

''Children, I have left each of you a fortune which is hidden 
in the ground on my farm. I want you to have this fortune which 
I have leftj, so do not cease to labor until you have found it.'" 

Before the sons could question the father about their inherit- 
ance he died and they were left to wonder where to look for their 
promised wealth. But the boys were all strong and of a deter- 
mined mind, so taking spades and shovels they began to dig every 
place that it would have been possible to hide money. Day after 
day they toiled until finally the entire farm was turned topsy 
turvy. However, they did not find a single coin and they began 
to say to one another, 

''Could some one else have found our money, and stoleii it, 
or was our father playing a trick on us?" 

While the sons were busy digging up the farm the faithful 
servants had been sowing the crops of wheat as usual, except 
that they complained bitterly when they had to sow grain on the 
uneven ground where their masters had dug, 

A few weeks later the younger son, while strolling over the 
farm wondering where he might dig next to find his fortune, 
noticed the wonderful crop of grain that was ripening. Running 
to his brothers he exclaimed, 

"Behold, brothers, we have found our fortune. Here it is 
growing for us. This wonderful crop which is soon to be har- 
vested, is the fortune which our father intended for us to find." 

99 



And so it was. Year after year the sons dug up the ground, 
and year after year the soil produced great crops until the sons 
were all very wealthy. 

And so tilling the soil has continued to this day, and without 
its benefits we would all he very poor and unhappy. 

(This story was told me many years ag-o and I always want to believe that it 
is true. Is it not a pleasant way to think of soil tillage?) 



100 



CHAPTER VII 

TILLAGE. 

The term "Tillage" refers to any method of working the soil 
in order to secure better conditions for the growing of crops. We 
ordinarily divide the term into two main divisions as follows : 

1. Deep tillage, as with the plow. 

2. Shallow tillage, as with the harrow and cultivator. When 
shallow tillage is practiced between rows of growing crops it is 
further classified as inter-tillage. 

History of Tillage: Tillage has been practiced since the very 
beginning of Agriculture in some form or other. During all of 
this time constant improvements have been made in the tillage 
implements. The first plows were merely crooked sticks. These 
sticks were dragged along over the soil and merely scratched it 
enough that seeds could be sown. Fig. 38 shows a primitive plow. 

Later the plow was improved, so that it had a sort of mould- 
board which turned the soil and crumbled it. Then an iron point 
was added and this form of plow was considered a wonderful 
machine. It was used for many years, and worked fairly well. 
Changes continued, however, and at the present time we have 
large plows with excellent mould-boards and made entirely of 
iron and steel. We have at present many kinds of deep tillage 
machines, each maker claiming his machine to be the best suited 
for its particular work. 

Purpose of Tillage: If you were to ask the average person 
why he tills the soil, he could possibly give you only one, or, at 

101 



102 Soils and Fertilizers 

most, two reasons. There are many reasons for tillage, the 
following being some of the most important ones : 

1. Tillage makes a good seed bed by crumbling the soil 
and making it fine. 

2. Tillage destroys weeds by covering them and cutting off 
their roots. 

3. Tillage covers manures, stubble and other organic matter 
so that it can easily decay. 

4. Tillage unlocks plant food in the soil by breaking apart 
the soil grains. 

5. Tillage makes the surface soil deeper and gives more 
room for the roots of the plants. 

6. Tillage warms the soil by preventing evaporation. 

The value of thoroughly 
pulverizing a soil to liberate 
plant foods may be shown 
by a very simple method. 

Fill two tumblers with 

water, and into each put a 

picTTs" tablespoonful of salt. Stir 

The first plow. , , , ,, , , 

one tumbler thoroughly. 
Compare the amount of undissolved material in the two tumblers. 
What effect do you think stirring a soil would have on the plant 
foods present? 

The Value of Securing Good Tilth: Experience has taught 
us that it requires great care and attention to bring a field into 
the proper condition for planting seeds (that is into good tilth). 
Also, we have learned that the stiff er and more resistant a soil is 
the more care it requires to bring about a desirable tilth. Some 
people scoff at the idea that good tilth is an important factor in 
successful farming. They say that since nature neither plows 
nor harrows, yet produces abundantly and leaves the soil in an 




Tillage 103 

ideal condition, why should men give so much time to the con- 
sideration of tilth. Nature, if left alone, will cover the whole 
universe thoroughly with vegetation, even to the steep rocky 
cliffs and hills which men could not possibly cultivate. Since 
nature practices no cultivation, how then can she maintain this 
thrifty condition, is the question they ask. 

How Nature Maintains Fertility: If we examine Nature's 
methods we can easily see why she succeeds. Where she expects 
one plant to grow she sows a thousand seeds. Where one plant 
is not suited by environment to grow another is given its place. 
Many different kinds of plants grow on the same field, some 
rooting deeply, others shallow, and both growing at the same 
time. It is these roots that are plowing the soil, and the tops of 
the plants that are protecting the surface from baking, leaching 
and puddling. 

Such a practice, if attempted by the farmer, would not only 
be expensive, but impossible. A thrifty method of farming 
demands that every seed planted must grow, and that certain 
crops must occupj^ certain fields at regular intervals, to the ex- 
clusion of all other plants. To do this requires that each field 
be put in the proper tilth by an artificial method and maintained 
in that condition just so far as possible. 

Relation of Tilth to Boot System: When a seed starts to 
germinate the food in the seed must be used quickly by the young 
plant or it will decay and become unfit for the plant to use. As 
soon as this food is exhausted the plant must have a means of 
getting food from the soil, which requires that it have a rather 
complete root system. If the soil in which the seed is planted 
is hard and compact, the seed has a very hard time establishing 
a connection with the soil and sometimes dies. If however the 
soil is loose and porous the little roots soon establish themselves 
around each soil grain, and begin to collect food. Thus it is upon 
tilth, to a great extent, that the first growth of plants depends. 



104 Soils and Fertilizers 

In a poorly cultivated soil the roots, even if they do develop, 
are crowded, cramped and insufficient. In such a case, much 
time and plant food is lost, beside the fact that small and mis- 
shapen plants are produced. Again good tillage produces a great 
deal of soil area by destroying large clods and hard spots, thus 
giving the plant more chances to obtain plant food. 

Continued Cultivation Injurious: Even the best of tillage, if 
continued year after year, breaks down the compound grain 
structure of the soil, and causes it to run together after each rain, 
and to become too fine in structure. This condition cannot be 
entirely avoided, therefore we may consider as a general fact that 
the longer a field is under cultivation the more cultivation it 
requires. This explains one reason why a soil that is said to be 
worn out by long cultivation must have such careful treatment 
in order to produce a satisfactory crop. 

To Restore Tilth: In order that tilth may be restored to a 
soil that has been under cultivation, it becomes necessary to seed 
it down to grass. After it is once covered with sod, the puddling 
action of rain is prevented, the soil particles are wedged apart 
by the roots, and finally when the plants decay and tillage is 
again practiced, the soil is open, mellow and fertile. Thus seed- 
ing to grass is a part of tillage, and does more than merely add 
plant food to the soil. However the more complete tillage is, and 
the more care exercised in its practice, the better are the results 
that follow. 

Effect of Moisture Upon Plowing: In stirring soil to im- 
prove its structure great care must be exercised that the soil is in 
the proper mechanical condition. If the soil is filled with water 
when it is plowed the soil grains are in no wise held together and 
the stirring of them causes each soil grain to get as close to every 
other grain as possible. This mass of soil upon drying becomes 
very hard, and is said to be puddled. What takes place may be 
illustrated with sand and gravel. Take two pint cups and fill 



Tillage 105 

one one-half full of gravel and the other one-half full of sand. 
Pour the gravel into the one-half cup of sand. 

This will give you a cup almost full of sand and gravel. 
Now, stir the two. You will find after they are thoroughly 
mixed that you have very little more than a half cupful of the 
mixture, and that all open spaces are well filled. This is exactly 
what happens in a puddled soil. 

If, on the other hand, a clay soil is very wet, and we wait 
until it is thoroughly dry before stirring, the clay will break up 
in large, hard clods. This is because the moisture collects around 
large numbers of soil particles, and holds them together. To get 
such a soil to break up into a crumbly structure, we should break 
up the shallow crust on the soil just as soon as horses can walk 
over the soil without sinking more than an inch or so. This culti- 
vation can be very shallow, and can later be followed by the plow, 
or cultivator, when the soil will be found to be in good tilth. The 
structure of a clay soil depends largely on the way it is treated, 
and since structure is so important to the growth of plants, it 
should receive very careful study. The kind of plows used, as well 
as when they are used, is important, therefore the various tools 
for tillage will be mentioned here. 

TOOLS FOR TILLAGE. 

For Deep Tillage we have several kinds of plows now in 
use. We have walking plows and riding plows. We have disk 
plows and mouldboard plows. When we hitch two or more plows 
to the same frame we have what is known as a gang plow. Plows 
larger than two plow gangs are usually drawn by gasoline or 
steam traction engines. (See Plate 8.) Very deep plowing is 
sometimes done by means of a plow called a subsoil plow. 

For Shallow Tillage we have even a greater number of ma- 
chines than for deep tillage. Of the harrow classification, the 
spring tooth, the spike tooth, and the disk are the common forms. 



106 



Soils and Fertilizers 



A weeder is a modified form of the spring tooth harrow. 
Flankers, drags and rollers are the common forms of compacting 
tools used for smoothing and compacting the soil. 

For intertillage, we have the cultivator in many forms. We 
have walking and riding cultivators; we have single shovels, 
double shovels, straddle rows, and are now coming to use, to a 
great extent, the double row cultivator. Of these cultivators 
there are both the disk and the shovel types. The disk cultivator 
is rather a recent tool for intertillage. The many other forms of 




FIG. 39. 
How a plow pulverizes a soil. 



small cultivators used between narrow rows of plants are placed 
under the one classification — Garden Cultivators. 

We will discuss here the use of just a few of the most im- 
portant tillage machines. 

The Plow: All of our various kinds of plows may be classed 
in two main types: the Mouldboard Flow and the Disk Flow. 
Both are intended to break up and pulverize the soil thoroughly. 
The more complete this pulverization > of the soil is made the 
better the job of plowing. Fulverization of a soil prevents the 



Tillage 107 

escape of moisture, and warms the soil. It makes a better seed 
bed. It makes more plant food available, in fact, we can almost 
measure our profits by the plowing which is done with the break- 
ing plow. No amount of after labor will make up for poor work 
done with the breaking plow. 

The Mouldhoard Plow: The mouldboard plow breaks apart 
the soil grains by making them slide upon one another. As the 
furrow slice slides along the curved surface of the polished mould- 
board, the particles of soil close to the mouldboard must travel 
farther than those farthest away from it. This breaks them all 
apart, just as the leaves of a book slide over one another if you 
bend the book. Fig. 39 shows how the soil grains slide past one 
another. 

Kinds of Mouldhoards: There are three main forms of 
mouldboards suited to the diiFerent soils : 

1. The mouldboard for sod is long and has a very slight 
curve. The curve of this mouldboard turns the sod more nearly 
upside down than the other types would. See Plate 7. 

2. Stubble ground (a field where a crop has been cut) should 
be left by the plow well crumbled, and with the furrow slices 
more nearly on edge than in sod. In order to get this result the 
mouldboard is short, steep and sharply curved. The sudden 
bend of the soil in the furrow slice caused by such a mouldboard 
breaks the soil into a very loose mass, if it is in the proper tilth. 

3. The average mouldboard is medium in form, classed be- 
tween these two extremes. It is used for general purposes and 
will do fairly good work on all kinds of soil, although this is not 
the best practice when it can be avoided. We should never lose 
sight of the fact that in doing any piece of work it is always best 
to study its particular condition, and select the implements and 
methods best suited to its need. 








PLATE 7. 



108 



Tillage 



109 



Since the mouldboard is really the most important single part 
of a plow, and the part which should be differently shaped for 
different kinds of work, it is well to get one plow and three dif- 
ferent plow bottoms, if it can be afforded. This includes the 
mouldboard and the plowshare. Such an arrangement will 
accommodate the different kinds of soils. Plate 7 shows the 
different kinds of mouldboards in general use. 



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PLATE 8. 



TO^ Z)«Vfc Plow: The disk plow has one very decided ad- 
vantage over the mouldboard plow. When the soil slides past 
the rolling cutters the bottom of the furrow slice is broken off 
and not cut as with the mouldboard plow. This is an impor- 
tant point. In the mouldboard plow the downward pressure 
upon the bottom of the furrow is as great as the upward 
pressure which turns the soil. This downward pressure at the 
bottom of the furrow greatly compacts the soil, and makes a 
hard laj^er which the plant roots have difficult}" in getting 
through. If the ground is a little wet, the plow sole slicks the 



110 Soils and Fertilisers 

bottom of the furrow, which puddles the soil and makes the 
soil below the furrow slice almost worthless to the plant dur- 
ing that growing season. A disk plow does not do this and for 
that reason deserves a place among our farm implements. Also, 
deep plowing can be done with a disk plow to a greater advan- 
tage than with a mouldboard plow. If we plow very deep 
with a mouldboard plow we turn a large amount of subsoil on 
top. Since this is poor soil, crops cannot grow so well in it as 
if we had not plowed so deeply. With a disk we can plow 
12 inches deep, or deeper, without bringing the subsoil to the 
top, and yet loosen the entire mass. 

There are, of course, some places where the disk plow will 
never do, on account of peculiar conditions such as very rough 
and rocky fields, but in most places it will ultimately find an 
important place. 

Depth of Plowing: In taking up this discussion let us keep 
in mind the fact that we refer to plowing the soil in preparing 
the seed bed, and not to the cultivation of a growing crop. It is 
the usual practice on most soils to plow from 4 inches to 6 
inches deep. The tendency now is towards deeper plowing. 
This is as it should be, and in almost all cases shallow plowing 
is to be discouraged. Deep plowing makes a deeper seed bed. 
It exposes more soil to the weathering agencies, which makes 
more food for the plant. It increases the moisture capacity 
of the soil. It kills many injurious insects. 

Soils that have been plowed shallow year after year, and 
which have a poor subsoil, should not be plowed deep all at 
once. The increase in the depth of plowing should be gradual 
under such conditions, increasing the depth an inch or two each 
year until the seed bed has been sufficiently deepened. 

The average farmer does not plow deep enough. Light 
horses and haste are the principal causes for this condition. It 
is well to bear in mind that such practice is not haste, but rather 



Tillage 



111 



waste. It is better to spend more time in preparing the seed bed 
than in the cultivation of the crops. Farmers too many times 
plant the seed before the soil is ready and then try to make up 
for their neglect by deep intertillage. Such practice cannot be 
too strongly discouraged. 

Fall Plowing: When barnyard manure is to be turned 
under, fall plowing gives more time for its decay and the crop 
grown the next spring can use it as food. Also a heavy appli- 
cation of coarse manure plowed under in the fall is quite ad- 
vantageous while if not plowed under until in the spring it 
separates the soil from the subsoil and cuts off the moisture 
supply from the plants. Fig. 40 shows such a condition. 

Heavy clay soils plowed in the fall are greatl}^ improved in 
texture by the freezing and thawing which they undergo. 

A farmer has more time 
for plowing in the fall than 
in the spring, and can get a 
great deal of work oiF of his 
hands by doing as much as 
possible of the plowing at 
this time. Crops suffer less 
from want of moisture in a 
fall plowed field than in a 
late spring plowed field. 
When fall plowing is prac- 
ticed many insects in the upturned soil are destroyed during the 
winter. 

Spring plowing, on the other hand, has the great advantage 
of permitting a winter cover crop (such as rye, clover or 
alfalfa) to grow. This is very important and will be men- 
tioned again under the topic "Green Manures." 

The Subsoil Plow: This plow does not turn the soil, but 
merely loosens it. Such a plow follows the regular plow and 




FIG. 40. 
A disadvantage of plowing under organic 
matter in tlie spring. 



112 



Soils and Fertilisers 



breaks the bottom of the furrow to the desired depth. It is not 
usually considered profitable, for it is expensive and slow. Dyna- 
mite is used in some localities in preference to the plow to loosen 
a subsoil. 

The Disk Harrow: The disk harrow is used in various forms 
modified to suit the special need at hand. Sometimes the disks 
are notched and such a harrow is known as a cutaway disk. The 
disk harrow is excellent to cut up a sod before it is plowed, or 
in an orchard, where it is not to be plowed. Where a sod is 
disked before it is plowed the plow does much better work. 




SUBSOIL, PLOW. 
(Oliver Plow Works.) 




PLATE 9. 



113 



114 Soils and Fertilizers 

One of the best uses of the disk harrow is in making a soil 
mulch for the conservation of soil moisture. By going over all of 
the land which is to be plowed in the spring with the disk harrow, 
the first thing, we make a mulch which prevents moisture from 
evaporating and keeps the soil in excellent tilth. This prevents 
trouble in spring plowing, as a farmer who has a large amount 
of land to plow in the spring is sure to get to the last acre rather 
late. In such a case the soil, if disked, retains its tilth and can 
be plowed, without inconvenience. Plate 9 shows a disk harrow. 

The disk harrow is excellent for preparing a shallow seed bed 
for small grain crops, as wheat or oats. It can be used advan- 
tageously to put plowed soil in good tilth, although it does not 
level the seed bed so well as a roller. 

Rollers: Rollers are very excellent machines for compacting 
the seed bed after the seed has been sown. They also crush 
clods and level the soil. The first rollers to be used were made 
of logs, but now we have large hollow iron rollers made in 
sections, to any desired size or length. Some of our rollers are 
not solid surfaces, but are composed of strips. It is said for this 
stjde of roller that it crushes clods better than the solid surface 
roller. 

Use Of The Roller: The main use of the roller is to restore 
capillarity after the seed is sown. In order to germinate well 
the seed must absorb a great amount of moisture. If the seeds 
are sown in loose soil the moisture does not come in contact with 
the seeds and germination is slow. If, however, the soil is packed 
close together around the seeds, capillarity is restored and the 
seeds obtain the moisture which they need. Have you ever 
noticed a gardener pack the soil around the seeds which he plants ? 
He does this to make the seeds germinate quickly. 

Wherever he walks over the seed bed after it is planted, or in 
any way presses the soil around the seed, germination takes place 
very quickly. If the ground is firmed (packed) it should be 



Tillage 115 

harrowed as soon as the plants are up to prevent the further 
loss of moisture from the compacted seed bed. This moisture 
is coming to the surface and evaporating into the atmosphere. 
Harrowing prevents it from coming to the surface of the soil, 
and consequently it cannot evaporate so rapidly. 

Rollers can be used to advantage to level the field and crush 
the clods before the seed is sown. This makes the seeding of a 
field easier and more uniform. If the field contains a large 
amount of weed seeds, rolling the soil will cause them to germi- 
nate at once. They can then be killed before the crop is planted ; 
indeed, this is the best time of the entire year to destroy weeds. 

Cultivators: Cultivators are used more for corn than for any 
other cereal crop. The old forms of single and double shovel 
cultivators had very large shovels and plowed 4 inches or 5 inches 
deep. The present cultivator, most commonly used, is a culti- 
vator that straddles one row of corn, the shovels plowing on each 
side of the row. The shovels are smaller than the older forms of 
shovels for the reason that large shovels (by cutting off so many 
valuable roots) do almost as much harm as they do good. 

The first time that corn is plowed it may be plowed rather 
deep if the weeds are bad, but after that plowing should be 
shallow. Deep plowing (3 inches or more deep) cuts off a great 
number of the little corn rootlets and causes much damage. 
Corn roots grow very abundantly near the surface, and care 
must be exercised not to disturb them. We cultivate corn prin- 
cipally to form a soil mulch, and not to form a seed bed. A 
shallow mulch is all that is needed, so we have no reason for 
deep cultivation. The harm we do the corn plants by deep plow- 
ing is not made up by the weeds which we kill. 

Cultivators which plow two rows at a time are rapidly being 
adopted, and they are great labor savers. Disk cultivators are 
also coming into use and they have many advantages, especially 
where vines are common weeds. 



116 Soils and Fertilizers 

Garden Cultivators: For a great many years the hoe has 
been the most common garden cultivator; it is also one of the 
most primitive. Sometimes this tool is used on a larger scale 
than in the garden. Small cultivators on wheels, either propelled 
by hand or horse power, are in a large measure taking the place 
of the hand garden hoe. 

REFERENCES. 

Soil Acidity; Tech. Bui. 19; State Agricultural College, Lansing, Mich- 
igan. 

Physical Improvement of Soils; Cir. 82, State Exp. Station, Urbana, 
Illinois. 

Hatch and Hazelwood Agriculture; published by Row Peterson and Co. 

39 Experiments in Soils; published by Chas. L. Quear, Muncie, Indiana. 



Tillage 117 

EXPERIMENT NO. 29. 

Soil Mulches. 

We have learned that soil mulches are very valuable because they stop 
the waste of soil moisture. You can perform a very interesting experiment 
to show just how a mulch behaves towards soil moisture. Take four loaves of 
cube sugar and a small quantity of powdered sugar. Obtain a small amount 
of solution colored red so it can easily be seen. Diamond Dye is excellent for 
the purpose, or water colored red by means of red ink will do. Sprinkle 
a thick layer of powdered sugar on top of each loaf of cube sugar. Stack 
three or four loaves of the cube sugar upon one another, with the powdered 
sugar between, and set the whole thing carefully in a shallow pan containing 
the colored solution. Note the time it takes for the colored solution to rise 
through to each cube and the time required to pass through each layer of 
powdered sugar. Compare the time required to pass through the cubes and 
the time to pass through the layers of sugar. You can see that the powdered 
sugar, which represents the fine soil (the mulch) does not allow the moisture 
to come up through it very rapidly. How does the time compare with thick- 
ness in each case.^ 

In your note-book write a discussion upon the value of mulches to con- 
serve moisture. 

EXPERIMENT NO. 80. 

Rolling a Soil Increases Capillarity. 

The simple act of pressing the soil above the seed on planting it has 
oft-times saved a valuable crop that would otherwise never have sprouted. 
To prove the benefit of firming the soil the following experiment has been 
prepared : 

Either in the seed testing box or in a plot of ground out of doors, if it is 
late enough in the spring, prepare a very fine seed bed of loose, light loam. 
Plant some seeds in rows, being careful not to pack the soil any more than 
is absolutely necessary. If you have prepared a plot out of doors, plant the 
seeds regular distances apart. If you are using the indoor seed bed, plant 
the seeds about three inches apart with the rows about six inches apart. 
Now, carefully firm the soil around the seed in every other row of the. bed 
which you have planted. If this is properly done, in half your rows the 
seeds will have the soil snugly pressed around them, while in the other half 
the soil grains will be very loose and not so close to the seeds. Which seeds 
will have the best chance to get moisture? Record the results at the close of 



118 Soils and Fertilizers 

the fourth day and every other day thereafter for ten or twelve days. At 
the close of your experiment, write a discussion on "How Seeds Should Be 
Planted," 

Examine a corn planter, giving careful attention to the shape of the 
wheels, and find out why they are made as they are, and whether or not they 
are designed to firm the soil around the seed. 

Write a discussion entitled, "The Best Type of Corn Planter Wheels." 

EXPERIMENT NO. 31. 

The Effect of Puddling a Soil. 

Puddling the soil means making the soil very compact in structure. The 
common mouldboard plow, as we have shown, has a tendency to puddle the 
soil below the plow sole. The soil is firmed by the plow sole due to the fact 
that the plow acts like a wedge when it is pulled through the soil. 

Fill two bottles each one-half full of loose clay soil. Then poi^r into 
each an inch of thoroughly wet soil. Tamp this wet soil until it is thoroughly 
puddled. Now fill the bottles to within an inch of the top with the same 
kind of soil that you have below. 

Fill two other bottles within an inch of the top with the same kind of 
soil, but do not moisten any of it. Let the puddled layer of soil in the two 
bottles become dry before continuing the experiment. In a pan of water im- 
merse the mouth of one of the bottles containing the puddled layer of soil and 
one which contains the loose soil. 

Record results at regular intervals to show in which soil the water rises 
to the top in the shortest time. Pour water into the other two bottles and 
observe the rapidity with which the water percolates through and drips from 
the bottom. What is the effect of puddling a soil on the passage of soil moisture 
either up or down? 

EXPERIMENT NO. 32. 

Action of Frost on Soils. 

Puddle about a quart of stiff clay by adding water and stirring thor- 
oughly. Mould this puddled clay into three balls of about the same size. 

Place one ball of clay where it will freeze. If the experiment is per- 
formed in winter, place the ball of clay on the window sill, and leave it over 
night. Place the second ball where it will be subjected to ordinary room 



Tillage 11 Si 

temperature. Place the third ball on the stove and bake it. Compare the 
three balls of clay on the following day. What happens in each case? If no 
results show in the clay that was exposed to a freezing temperature, let it 
freeze a second time. 

From the results of this experiment, what would you say of the practice 
of fall plowing heavy clay land? 

Is there any advantage in fall plowing, aside from the action of frost 
on the soil? Are there any disadvantages to fall plowing? 

EXPERIMENT NO. 33. 
The Plow. 

The primary and most important tillage machine is the plow. It is more 

generally used than any other machine. We usually feel that there is not 

much difference between plows, but that a plow is a plow, no more and no 

less. Although a plow is not very complex, it is very delicately adjusted, and 

• if improperly set will do very poor and unsatisfactory work. 

A walking plow has three important parts for us to consider: the share, 
landside and mouldboard. In observing a plow, give attention to the follow- 
ing details: 

Name of the plow; where made; whether plow is best suited for stubble 
or for sod ; size of the plow ; distance from point of share to the center of 
hitch; vertical distance from bottom of the plow to the highest point of the 
beam; distance and reason the beam extends outside of the landside; note the 
concave nature of the landside; the concavity at the bottom of the plow along 
the landside, and explain the value of this concave construction. 

Explain why the mouldboard has a high polish. 

Examine a dull plowshare and point, and compare with a sharp one. 
What is the value of having the blacksmith sharpen the plow? 

In like manner, examine a riding or sulky plow. Compare the two, and 
make note of any differences that you may find. 

If there is a hardware store in your town, have the dealer explain to you 
the different kinds of plows, and the value of each. 








7\ 



Fi9.l Corn Sheller. 



2'— 




F19.2 Tool Box. 



I 



PLATE 10. 

120 



Tillage 121 

AGRICULTURAL APPARATUS AND HOW IT IS MADE. 

* Corn Sheller, 

This device was designed especially to remove the tips and butts of ears 
of seed corn. It will save time and blistered hands if properly made and 
used. Where there is not enough corn to be shelled to demand a corn sheller 
it is a very excellent device for shelling entire ears of corn. 

Obtain a good smooth board as near 1 inch by 6 inches by 2^/2 feet as 
possible. Soft pine will answer very well. Near the center of the board 
about 1 foot apart bore two holeSj one hole 2 inches in diameter and the 
other 11/2 inches in diameter. Drive nails at an angle around each hole as 
shown in Plate 10^ Figure 1; 4d nails with the heads cut oif are very excellent 
for this purpose. They may be used without removing the heads, although 
they do not work quite so well. 

The board should be laid across a box to catch the shelled corn. By in- 
serting the butt of the ear in the large hole and giving it a twist the shelling 
is accomplished very easily. The small hole is for removing the kernels from 
the tips of the ears. 

If you make and try this little device you will never again resort to the 
slow method of hand shelling the butts and tips of seed ears of corn. 

Tool Box. 

A tool box that will contain the ordinary hand tools used on the farm is 
a very desirable addition to the farmer's handy conveniences. It is not only 
handy, but it saves tools, and time spent in hunting for mislaid articles. 

The box shown in Plate 10 is large enough to hold all the tools the aver- 
age farmer desires to carry. The dimensions given are all inside dimensions. 
The box may be made of any kind of materials desired; seven-eighths-inch soft 
wood makes a very good and serviceable box. If you have made several pieces 
of work with tools, design a box similar to the one shown in the plate and 
make the box after your own design. 



122 Soils and Fertilizers 

QUESTIONS AND PROBLEMS. 

1. If spring tooth harrows cost $1.00 per tooth, what would three sections 

cost, each section containing 14 teeth? 

2. If a man plows 1 acre per day, how long will it require to plow a field 

160 rods wide and 480 rods long.? 

3. If a plow cuts a 16-inch furrow, how many times will it have to go around 

a field to plow a strip 2 rods wide? 

4. A man can prepare 10 acres for oats in one day with a disk harrow. If 

he uses a plow it will require 10 days. How much would he save if his 
time was worth $4.00 per day, and if the seed beds were equal in value ? 

5. If a farmer plowed l^^ inches deeper each year, how many years would 

it take to increase the depth of his plowing from 4 inches to 10 inches? 

6. If one-half of the roots of a corn plant are found equally distributed in 

the first 8 inches of soil, what per cent, of all of the roots are cut off 
when a man plows 4 inches deep ? 2 inches deep ? 

7. Suppose that the labor of a horse is worth $1.00 per day and that of a 

man $2.00 per day. How much money would a 2-row cultivator save 
over a single row cultivator per day if it required one more horse tc 
pull it, and does twice as much work? 

8. At the above rate, how long would it take to save enough to pay for i 

2-row cultivator if it costs $40.00 ? 

9. Define tillage. 

10. What were the first plows like? 

11. Give reasons for tillage. 

12. What is deep tillage? 

13. Name two tools used for deep tillage. 

14. Name the parts of a plow. 

15. Describe the three types of mouldboards. 

16. What is one disadvantage of a mouldboard plow? 

17. What is the advantage of deep plowing? 

18. What is the advantage of fall plowing? 

19. Why do we have small shovels on a cultivator? 

20. Why do we cultivate corn? 



CHAPTER VIII 

ELEMENTS VALUABLE IN FERTILIZERS. 

Any substance which when added to a soil will increase the 
yield of a crop is regarded as a fertilizer. The main use of a 
fertilizer is to furnish food for plants. Out of the ten plant 
foods which all plants must have in order to live only three are 
likely to be lacking in a soil. These three are, therefore, the 
ones which we consider when buying or using a fertilizer. We 
call them essential elements. They are: Nitrogen, Phosphorus 
and Potash. 

Classes of Fertilizers: As just mentioned, fertilizers are 
used principally to add plant foods to a soil. Also they are used 
to improve the soil by changing its texture or physical nature. 

All fertilizers are divided into two classes, depending upon 
which of these purposes they serve in the soil. 

1. If a substance added to a soil contains either Nitrogen, 
Phosphorus, or Potash, it is called a direct fertilizer. 

If it contains all three of them it is further classified as a 
complete fertilizer. 

2. If a substance increases the yield of a crop by merely 
improving the physical nature of the soil without applying any 
essential plant food, it is called an indirect fertilizer. For ex- 
ample, lime very often improves a crop when applied to a soil, 
yet it is not a plant food. It is called, therefore, an indirect fer- 
tilizer. 

Value of Indirect Fertilizers: Although indirect fertilizers 
do not add plant foods to a soil, they improve it in many ways. 

123 



124 



Soils and Fertilisers 



Some plant foods which are already in the soil will not dissolve 
in water. We have already learned that until they will dissolve in 
water they are of no use to the plants. When plant foods are 
not in a form which will dissolve they are said to be unavailable 
plant foods. 

Indirect fertilizers put on soils help to break down this un- 
available plant food, and make it soluble. They also improve 
the structure of a soil, usually causing an increased crop for 
this reason. Some indirect fertilizers are used to sweeten sour 
soils and to prevent available plant foods from being washed 
out of the soil. 




FIG. 41. 
The value of an indirect fertilizer. 
On the left an acid soil untreated. On the right the same soil with limestone added. 

Nitrogen: Nitrogen is one of the important three essential 
plant foods. It is the one most often lacking in a soil, and 
costs the most when we put it in fertilizers. In a good compound 
the pure nitrogen costs about 18 cents per pound. All nitrogen 
comes at some time from the air. Four-fifths of the air around us 
is nitrogen worth 18 cents a pound if we could only get it into the 
soil. Would it not be a good thing if we could find a method to 
get this nitrogen from the air and put it into the soil for the 
plants ? 

It seems at first thought that it would not be of any use to 
do this. Instead we might let the plants help themselves to the 



Elements Valuable in Fertilizers 126 

nitrogen in the air as they need it. However, we know of only 
a very few kinds of plants that can do this, the most common 
of which are mentioned below. Most plants would die for want 
of nitrogen if there was none in the soil, even with nitrogen all 
around them in the air. The few kinds of plants that can obtain 
nitrogen from the air are very valuable on this account, and they 
should be grown a great deal on the farm. 

How Plants Obtain Nitrogen: The plants which can take 
nitrogen from the air are called nitrogen gatherers, or legumes. 
The clovers, alfalfa, cow peas, soy beans, peanuts, vetch, etc. 
(in all, 14 cultivated varieties) belong to this class. 

For a long time it has been known that pea-like plants were 
good for the soil, but until recently it was not understood how 
they benefited it. It has been shown lately that bacteria on the 
roots of leguminous plants gather nitrogen from the air and 
supply the plant. 

This very recent discovery regarding the power of plants 
to take free nitrogen from the air is one of the most impor- 
tant discoveries of modern times. This fact gives the farmer 
a means under his direct control by which he may, at will, enrich 
any soil he desires with nitrogen drawn directly from the atmos- 
phere. 

Nature of Bacteria: The bacteria which take this nitrogen 
from the air are very little understood, but it has been satis- 
factorily shown that they exist in various soils in great numbers, 
and have the habit of locating themselves upon the roots of cer- 
tain plants, and establishing there a home. The bacteria them- 
selves are little plants so small that one single plant could not 
be seen at all. However, these little plants collect in great num- 
bers and are surrounded by bunches, or knots, at the places 
where they become attached. These places are called nodules 
or tubercules. 



126 



Soils and Fertilizers 



Look at the roots of any of the plants which we have men- 
tioned, and you will find little knots on them. Inside of each 
knot are thousands of little bacteria which collect nitrogen from 
the air, and furnish it to the plants in compounds which it can 
use. In return for this nitrogen furnished, the plants upon 
which the bacteria thrive obtain substances from the soil and air, 
and in the leaves convert it into food, a part of which is fur- 
nished to the bacteria. 




FIG. 42. 
Nodules on the roots of soy beans. 



Partnership Between Plants: Thus we have the beautiful 
green leaves of the clover plant manufacturing food in the 
sunlight, and sending this food underground to furnish power 
to the little organisms which are so essential to the life of the 
entire plant. The clovers could no more live without the bac- 
teria than the bacteria without the clovers, yet men have grown 
clovers for hundreds of years without any idea that these plants 
needed anything other than soil. 



Elements Valuable in Fertilizers 127 

Year after year, when legumes refused to grow on fields 
where bacteria was not present, men attributed their failure 
to weather, soil, etc., entirely ignorant of this perfect partner- 
ship existing between these two friends, each doing for the other 
the work which it was unable to do for itself. 

Life of Bacteria: Since these nitrifying (nitrogen gather- 
ing) bacteria can be found in soils after a crop has been re- 
moved, some people claim that they can exist independently of 
the roots of plants. But it has been lately shown that the 
bacteria cease to live after the roots and stubble of the plants 
have entirely decayed. This usually takes five or six years. So, 
we might say that the bacteria in a field is lost if no legumes 
have been planted for a period of six years. Sometimes there 
is a way by which bacteria is carried to a field each year. Run- 
ning water is an example. 

Classes of Bacteria: Another very important fact regarding 
bacteria is, that certain bacteria live on certain varieties of plants, 
and will not live on any other variety. For instance, the bac- 
teria which thrive on red clover will not live on the roots of al- 
falfa, and vice versa. 

This fact has shown us that there are various classes of bac- 
teria, and that to grow any leguminous crop successfully, we 
must see to it that bacteria peculiar to that plant is present. 
Thus if we desired to get a stand of alfalfa we would have to 
supply the bacteria adapted to alfalfa, in order that the alfalfa 
plants could have a constant supply of nitrogen. 

How to Supply Bacteria: The best and easiest way to do 
this is to take soil from a field upon which alfalfa has been grow- 
ing for several years, and spread a little of it over the field to 
be planted. This gives the bacteria a start, and they will soon 
cover the roots of the young alfalfa. The bacteria of alfalfa 
and sweet clover are the same and can be used interchangeably. 
This is not true of most bacteria. 



128 



Soils and Fertilizers 



This shows us the way to answer our question regarding how 
to get nitrogen from the air into the soil. By growing legumes 
and leaving the plants on the field we would soon have an abun- 
dance of nitrogen for the use of plants that can not supply 



their own nitrogen. 




FIG. 43. 
Nodules on the roots of alfalfa plants. 



Elements Valuable in Fertilizers 129 

Legumes mid Fej^tility: We must remember, however, that 
if we grow legumes, and then remove all that we can in the 
form of hay, without replacing anything, we are not returning 
any more nitrogen than we are taking away. A crop of clover 
every few years will not be sufficient to keep a soil fertile. 

The preceding picture shows the roots of an alfalfa plant 
which are covered with nodules. Such a plant is able to live in 
a soil in which very little of tliis expensive element, nitrogen, 
is present. 

Legumes Do Not Always Obtain Nitrogen: Sometimes 
farmers have had good stands of legumes, such as alfalfa, and 
yet their soils have become deficient in nitrogen as well as in 
other plant foods. Such farmers have been disappointed in the 
apparent value of alfalfa, and without investigating and dis- 
covering the reasons for the failure, have incorrectly classed it 
as a crop not good for the soil. 

This condition is no fault of the crop, but is due to lack of 
bacteria. This lack of bacteria may be due to an acid soil, or to 
the fact that the soil needs inoculation. Under such a condition 
the alfalfa thrives for a time upon the food present and then 
becomes scarce for lack of food. In such a field alfalfa would 
add no more plant food to a soil than an equal amount of corn. 

Compounds of Nitrogen: Nitrogen is found as a part of sev- 
eral different substances. The most common forms of tliis ferti- 
lizer are: Nitrate of Soda, Dried Blood, Dried Meat, Fish 
Scraps, Tankage, etc. Thej^ are all good commercial forms of 
nitrogen, but none are so inexpensive as the nitrogen obtained 
from the air, or from barnyard manure. 

Nitrogen in the soil makes plants dark green in color. It 
makes them grow rapidly and it promotes leafiness. Nitrogen 
does not help to produce seeds or fruit, and for that reason you 
can see it is not so valuable a fertilizer on cereal (grain) crops 



130 Soils and Fertilisers 

as on truck crops. Truck crops usually yield large returns per 
acre and for this reason we can afford to put expensive fer- 
tilizers upon them. 

Phosphorus: Phosphorus in the plant goes to make the seed 
and fruit of the plant. Phosphorus is an especially good fer- 
tilizer to put on a cereal crop, such as corn, for it helps to pro- 
duce large well filled kernels. Phosphorus exists in the soil in 
rather small quantities, therefore we must be very careful to 
maintain enough of this food to supply the plant. 

How Phosphorus Is Removed From a Soil: Since most of 
the phosphorus which a plant takes from the soil is used in the 
grain, but very little of it that is taken into the plant is ever 
returned directly to the field. We either sell the grain, or feed 
it to the stock, and in either case the phosphorus is removed 
from the farm. If the grain is fed to stock, most of the phos- 
phorus in the grain goes to build up the bones of the animals, 
and only a very little is returned to the soil in the manure. When 
the animals are sold, they take away with them this phosphorus 
which came from the soil. 

How to Supply Phosphorus: We cannot supply phosphorus 
to a soil like we can nitrogen. The only way to obtain phos- 
phorus is to buy it in the form of fertilizer and put it on the 
fields. There is no doubt that the average soil which has been 
cropped with cereal crops would be greatly benefited by an ap- 
plication of a fertilizer rich in phosphorus. The great question 
is: "What form of phosphorus is the best to use?" 

Compounds of Phosphorus: Most of the phosphorus which 
we buy as commercial fertilizer is dug out of the ground. We 
have large mineral deposits of phosphorus in Carolina, Tennessee 
and Florida. This rock as it comes from the mines is called rock 
phosphate. It is burned to remove the organic matter. Then 
it is put in huge crushers and ground into a very fine powder. 



Elements Valuable in Fertilizers 131 

This is the form in which it is usually sold. In this raw or un- 
changed form it is called "Floats." Sometimes the floats are 
treated with sulphuric acid. This changes the raw rock so that 
it will dissolve in water. In this form it is called acid phos- 
phate. 

JRaw Rock Phosphate: Phosphorus in its raw rock state 
will hardly dissolve in water. It is therefore said to be unavail- 
able. Since it is so slow to become of use to the plants it does 
not produce any extraordinary results the first year. 




FIG. 44. 
A good method of spreading raw rock phosphate or limestone. 

However, it remains in the soil from year to year, and does 
good until it is all consumed. If raw rock phosphate can be put 
on the fields with organic matter, such as manure, it will be- 
come available rapidly and will show excellent results. 

The best way to apply raw rock phosphate with organic 
matter is to throw a few shovelfuls of the raw rock on each 
load of manure before it goes to the field and spread the two to- 
gether. Where this can be done, considering the inexpensive- 
ness of the material, raw rock phosphate is to be preferred to 
any other form. No load of manure should go to the average 
field without this added plant food. 



132 Soils and Fertilizers 

Acid Phosphate: Acid phosphate usually does not injure 
the soil, as many suppose, by making it acid. In some acid 
phosphates there is a small excess of acid and such fertilizers 
if used in large quantities become injurious. This is unusual 
and is not a serious objection. The only objection to acid phos- 
phate is its price. Considering the difference in price it is more 
economical to use raw rock phosphate if the soil is rich in or- 
ganic matter. It is of very little benefit, however, to use raw 
rock phosphate on a soil which is lacking in organic matter. 
Acid phosphate is partly soluble in water, and is called an avail- 
able form of phosphorus for this reason. It gives quicker re- 
turns on a soil than raw rock phosphate. However its good 
effects do not last so long. 

In general then we may say that either form of phosphorus 
is desirable, depending upon the nature of the soil, and whether 
or not returns are desired quickly. It is well to remember that 
any fertilizer applied on a field that is to produce a cereal crop 
should contain a large per cent of phosphorus. Do not hesi- 
tate to use phosphorus as a fertilizer. If you cannot decide 
upon which form to use, try both. There is but a small chance 
to lose in either case. 

Potash: Potash is not so important for us to consider as 
either phosphorus or nitrogen, although it is just as necessary 
for the plants. Ordinary soil is naturally richer in this 
element than in either of the other two. Very little of it is 
found in the grain of plants, but mostly in the stalk and leaves. 
For this reason most of that which the crop removes is returned 
to the soil in the straw and manure. Potash gives the stems of 
a crop stiffness. For example, oats blow down badly if they 
lack potash. We say that they lodge. Another indication which 
usually shows lack of potash is color. If a plant becomes a 
blue green color instead of the healthy green color usually pres- 
ent, it is due to a lack of potash. However, plants may lack 
potash and still not show a blue green color. 



Elements Valuable in Fertilizers 133 

Light sandy soils and swampy land usually lack potash. 
Some special plants, such as potatoes, tobacco, roots, etc., re- 
quire larger proportions of potash than other plants; its appli- 
cation is especially good for such crops. 

Potash is found in wood ashes, tobacco stems, barnyard 
manure, and in several chemical compounds. Potash behaves 
in the soil a little like lime, and since it adds to the value of a 
soil in more ways than merely to increase the amount of plant 
food, it should receive rather careful study. Usually our fer- 
tilizers do not contain as much potash as they should. Large 
quantities of potash have a tendency to make a soil deficient in 
lime, another important substance although it is not a plant food. 
We should be careful and not let this happen to our soils. 

Lime: Lime is the common name for a substance which the 
chemist calls Calcium Oxide. The several compounds of lime, as 
limestone, caustic Hme, etc., will be explained later. Since it is not 
one of the necessary plant foods, lime is not considered a direct 
fertilizer. However, it plays such an important part in the life 
of a plant, that it has well earned the name of an indirect fer- 
tilizer. Although in itself not a food, it is a great aid to the 
plants in obtaining the foods which they need. 

Acids and Bases: Before we can understand properly the 
importance of lime, we must understand the difference between 
an acid and a base. An acid is sour to the taste. Lemon juice 
and vinegar are acids. Possibly you can think of other sub- 
stances that are sour, or acid. A base is bitter to the taste. 
Lye is a base. 

To show Acids and Bases take a little Hydrochloric acid and 
some Sodium Hydroxide Solution. With a piece of blue litmus 
paper test each. You will find that the acid will turn the paper 
red while the Sodium Hydroxide solution or base will turn it 
blue. Put the litmus paper in a vessel and pour over it a few 



134. 



Soils and Fertilisers 



drops of Hydrochloric acid. Then add to the acid very slowly, 
Sodium Hydroxide until the litmus paper is neither blue nor red. 
Taste the product. What is it? You have made a very valuable 
substance out of two poisonous compounds. Lime would have 
produced similar results if mixed with an acid. This is the chief 
office of lime in the soil. It is attacked by the harmful acids and 
beneficial substances are produced. 

When plants grow in the soil we have learned that they give 
off acid. A soil that is producing crops will, in time, become 
very acid or sour if something does not prevent. When a soil 




PLATE 11. 
A limestone quarry. 



becomes sour most plants refuse to grow in it. Even the little 
bacteria which we have mentioned will not thrive on a sour soil. 
Such a soil is worthless until something is done to sweeten it 
so crops can thrive again. 

Ijime is the most valuable substance that we have for neu- 
tralizing this acid. We say that it sweetens the soil for when 



Elements Valuable in Fertilizers 135 

lime is put on a soil the acid is neutralized. Bacteria which are 
so necessary begin again to grow, and the soil soon becomes 
productive. A soil that is poor in humus usually is poor be- 
cause it lacks lime. Lime saves the humus present in a soil. In 
other words, lime on a soil makes the manure last longer. 

Limestone is a very common rock, usually grayish in color 
and rather coarse grained. There are many varieties of lime- 
stone, varying in color from pure white as in marble to black. 
Marble is limestone changed by great heat and pressure. (See 
E, Fig. 45.) 

Limestone makes an excellent building stone, is used in puri- 
fying iron, in making glass, as ballast for roadbeds, as a fertil- 
izer, and has a myriad more valuable uses. When heated by man 
limestone becomes caustic, and is then valuable in cement, as a 
plaster, in preparing cloth for use, as a medicine, etc. In fact 
outside of sand limestone is the most valuable rock we have and 
likewise very common. 

In the above picture you can see the drill derrick which 
bores holes in the limestone to a depth of twenty feet or more. 
Giant powder is placed in these holes and exploded. The 
loosened masses of stone are placed on the cars shown in the 
picture, and these cars are hitched to a cable which pulls them 
to the top of a very high building. 

From the top of this building the stone descends through 
various crushers and screens, and is finally deposited in bins ready 
for its various uses. 

How Lime Came Into Use as a Fertilizer: Many years ago 
the value of limestone as a fertilizer was recognized by no one, 
and its use came to be realized through a very round about way. 
Railroads needed crushed stone as ballast for their road beds, 
and where limestone was plentiful they used it in large quan- 
tities. Great crushers were installed at the limestone quarries 



136 Soils and Fertilizers 

to crush the large rock to the desired size. In the course of this 
work a large amount of limestone dust began to accumulate 
and this dust was not only worthless to the railroad people, but 
was in their way. Farmers near the quarries were hired to haul 
the dust away, and were instructed to dump it in out-of-the-way 
places where it would do no harm. After this had been going 
on for several years, some observant persons noticed that along 
the wagon road, over which the rock dust had been hauled, a 
very excellent growth of clover was present. This started an 
investigation which has proved that a product once considered 
worthless is more valuable than the purpose for which the stone 
proper was originally used. Now great quantities of the stone 
are ground directly to a powder and placed upon the soil. The 
picture on another page shows you the operation of a limestone 
quarry whose entire output is used on the soil, and in road build- 
ing. 

Limestone Stops the Waste of Phosphorus and Nitrogen: 
When phosphorus or nitrogen is liberated in the soil it begins to 
escape at once if there is no lime present to unite with it. Much 
plant food is lost just this way each year. However, if lime is in 
the soil, the phosphorus or nitrogen will unite with the lime and 
thus, cannot get away until taken up by a plant. Usually for this 
reason a soil that is rich in lime is rich in both nitrogen and phos- 
phorus. 

Add Limestone: Limestone is the very keynote to a fertile 
soil. You cannot build up a soil without limestone any more 
than you can build a house without a foundation. If you have 
only a little limestone in your soil, as is usually the case, get 
more. There is no danger of using too much of it on your soil. 
A greater part of it will remain until it is used. It will not in 
any way injure your land. Four tons to the acre should be put 
on a soil that shows it needs lime at all. If it needs lime badly, 
eight tons to the acre is not too much. .One hundred tons on 
an acre would not hurt a soil in the least. If you want to save 



Elements Valuable in Fertilizers 137 

your manure; if you want to build up your soil, start right 
by seeing to it that your soil has plenty of limestone. The best 
soils contain one to two per cent limestone. This means that 
the top foot of such a soil contains about 30 tons of lime to each 
acre. 

Many people say that lime tears down a soil and in a few 
years makes it worthless. Natural lime (limestone), the kind 
you should use, does not attack the soil, and therefore cannot tear 
it down. The other substances in the soil which are trying to 
escape, and which are valuable, attack the lime and are merely 
retained by it. Natural lime builds up instead of tearing down. 






A B 



FIG. 45. 




Forms of lime — 

A — Quicklime. B — Marl. C — Water slaked lime. D — Air slaked lime E Lime- 
stone as marble. 



Burned or caustic lime may tear down a soil, so we must be 
careful of its use, if we use it at all. In order that you may 
understand the difference between the different forms of lime, 
we will discuss each separately. 

Raw or Natural Lime is limestone just as it is found in 
Nature. It is an inactive substance and does not attack other 
substances. Soil acids decompose limestone and in doing so are 
themselves destroyed. The more lime on a soil, the less it is torn 
down, and a soil without natural lime is, indeed, on the road to 
ruin. 

Burned Lime: When raw lime is burned it becomes caustic 
or active. It is this form of lime which we call quicklime and 
use in plaster. Burned lime will eat into the hands, shoes, or 
harness, and will attack organic matter in the soil. Too much 



138 Soils and Fertilizers 

of it will ruin a soil, and even small amounts must be used with 
care. It is not so desirable to use as raw lime. Fifty-six pounds 
of burned lime is equal in fertilizing value to one hundred pounds 
of raw lime but costs a great deal more. 

Slaked Lime: Burned lime when exposed to the air for a 
long time changes and loses its caustic or biting nature. It is 
then called air-slaked lime; or if we pour water on burned lime 
it soon loses this caustic property and is said to be water-slaked. 
Either water or air-slaked lime may be used in soil with safety, 
although not so much is required as of raw limestone, because it 
is stronger. As a fertilizer, seventy-two pounds of slaked lime 
is equal in value to one hundred pounds of raw limestone. 

Applying Lime: Lime in any form may be applied at any 
time with equally good results. When you have time is the best 
time. If you are using natural lime apply in any manner you 
please. Harrow it into the soil ; leave it on top ; or plow it under, 
it makes but little difference. Usually it is best to leave it near 
the surface, for lime naturally sinks. 

Cost of Limestone: Crushed limestone is very cheap and its 
cost should not keep any one from using it. Good ground lime- 
stone can be bought on the car for 75 cents per ton. The cost 
of transporting and applying it is more than the cost of the 
limestone. 

Indications That Lime Is Needed: Lime is needed if a 
soil is sour, or when it is neutral. When clovers will not grow, 
if the land is drained, the soil is probably sour. If crab-grass, 
redtop, etc., grow well and exclude plants that must have a 
sweet soil, apply lime. If a soil is poor in color — that is, if it 
is not black, apply lime and with it, organic matter. When clovers 
lose their color, and begin to die, lime is usually the remedy. Go 
along a crushed stone road and notice how high and thick the 
sweet clover — and, indeed, all clovers, have grown. You do not 



Elements Valuable in Fertilisers 139 

see such fine plants over in the field. It is the lime ground from 
the rocks by wagons and washed to the roadsides that has made 
the soil here so fertile for the growing clover plants. If you 
will but use your eyes and reasoning power you will convince 
yourself of the value of lime. 

Remember of lime that it does not take the place of the plant 
foods in the soil, and is of no value without plant foods. But 
also plant foods are of very little value without the lime. Each 
one is necessary for the success of the other. When we stop 
to think how much lime is being removed by the rain which falls 
year after year, and by the crops that are removed, we should 
no longer wonder at the need for applying this most necessary 
element to our soils. 

REFERENCES. 

Barnyard Manures; Bui. 346^ State Experiment Station, Wooster, Ohio. 

Fertilizers and Their Uses; Bui. 169, State Agr, College, Manhattan, 
Kansas. 

Liming the Soil; Cir. 33, State Experiment Station, Lafayette, Ind. 

Liming Iowa Soils; Cir. 2, State Experiment Station, Ames, Iowa. 

Farm Manures; Cir. 9, State Experiment Station, Ames, Iowa. 

Elementary Exercises in Agriculture ; Published by the MacMillan Co. 

Mayne and Hatch; Beginning Chemistry; Published by the American 
Book Co. 

Productive Farming, by Davis ; Published by Lippincott Publishing Co. 



140 Soils and Fertilisers 

EXPERIMENT NO. 34. 

Testing Soils for Nitrogen. 

We usually think of a black soil as a rich soil. Farmers generally say 
they have a rich, black soil. The black color of the soil usually denotes that 
the plants which grow in it will be large, green and healthy. This is due to 
the nitrogen which is present in such a soil. It is very valuable to be able to 
tell how much nitrogen is present in a soil. To do this accurately requires the 
use of an elaborated equipment, but there has been devised a rapid method 
which will answer for all practical purposes, and which does not require much 
apparatus. 

Try the following experiment on several soils, and see if you can not 
form a rather definite conclusion: 

To one tablespoonful of soil, add five tablespoonfuls of ten per cent. 
Caustic Potash solution. (This can be obtained at any drug store.) In an- 
other vessel, add to one tablespoonful of the same kind of soil five table- 
spoonfuls of water. This one is for a control. It is merely to compare the 
treated with the untreated sample. It is well to put these mixtures in glass 
vessels, such as beakers. 

Heat the solution of soil and caustic potash to the boiling point, and stir 
the solution of soil and water thoroughly. Set both mixtures aside for five 
minutes. At the end of that time compare the two. What dilFerences do you 
note? If the liquid that you heated is black and opaque it shows a large 
amount of humus. If, however, it allows light to pass through, it shows only a 
small amount. If the liquid is only yellow, or yellowish brown, it has prac- 
tically no humus content. 

Try this experiment on different kinds of soil, and write the results in 
your note-book. If caustic potash is not to be had lye may be used instead. 

EXPERIMENT NO. 35. 

Testing Soil for Acidity. 

This test for soil acidity is a very simple test and is very valuable to make 
a quick determination. Although it is not always to be relied upon, it usually 
gives very good results. Fit two thicknesses of filter paper or one of white 
blotting paper in the bottom of a tumbler or beaker. Under the filter paper 
place a small piece of litmus paper. On top of the filter paper place an inch 
or more of the soil to be tested. Add enough distilled water to saturate the 



Elements Valuable in Fertilizers 141 

soil. Prepare a second tumbler like the firsts except leave out the soil. (See 
note.) Use the same amount of water that you used in the other tumbler. 
This is for a control. Cover both tumblers and set aside for a couple of hours. 
Then examine the litmus paper through the bottom of the tumblers, and note 
any change of color that may have taken place. Red or pink color denotes 
the presence of a large quantity of acid ; a neutral color denotes a slightly 
acid condition, while a blue color denotes an alkaline condition. 

Now remove the soil and mix with it a tablespoonful of lime, and stir 
thoroughly. Put new filter papers into the tumbler containing the soil, but 
do not change the litmus paper. Put the soil containing the lime back into 
the beaker and proceed as before. Note if the litmus paper is aifected. 

You might mix acid with a sample of soil and repeat the experiment to 
see the eifect of acid if you so desire. 

Note: Remember that the litmus paper should be handled with forceps, 
especially if the hands are sweaty. Sweaty hands give off acid and will turn 
the paper red. If distilled water is not to be had, rain water may be used. 
Obtain rain water that has not come in contact with a roof, or any surface 
where it might collect impurities. If caught directly in a pail it will work 
very well. 



.142 Soils and Fertilisers 

QUESTIONS AND PROBLEMS. 

1. A farmer grew 30 bushels of corn on an acre of ground. The next year 

he applied 100 pounds of acid phosphate and produced 50 bushels. If 
acid phosphate was worth $25.00 per ton and if corn sold for 65c per 
bushel, how much did he make or lose the first year ? 

2. What is a direct fertilizer? What is an indirect fertilizer? 

3. What is a complete fertilizer? 

4. What is the value of an indirect fertilizer ? 

5. What is meant by unavailable plant foods ? 

6. What is a legume? 

7. Describe the use of Bacteria to plants. 

8. What are "Floats"? Define Acid Phosphate. 

9. Name some forms in which Nitrogen can be purchased. 

10. In what kind of soil is Potash most often lacking? 

11. Name three compounds of lime. 

12. What does limestone cost per ton in your community? 

13. What is the value of limestone to a soil? 

14. A fertilizer added to a soil increased the wheat crop for three years as fol- 

lows: The yield the first year was 29 bushels, the second year 24 
bushels, and the third year 30 bushels. The highest yield before the 
fertilizer was applied was 22 bushels. How much profit did the farmer 
receive from the fertilizer if it cost him $21.00 per acre? 



CHAPTER IX 

NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FERTILIZERS. 

The subject of Artificial Fertilizers is a very important prob- 
lem and one worthy of careful study. Probably there is no sub- 
ject which the farmer takes up so blindly as the application of 
fertilizers — both natural and artificial. 

When to Buy Fertilizers: The artificial fertilizers are not 
produced on the farm. They must be purchased by the farmer 
through a fertilizer agent who sells what is termed "Commercial 
Fertilizers." The term Artificial Fertilizers is taken to mean 



>-::© 



100 LBS. 

CORN SPCCI/IL 

fOH SAU BY 

JOHN SMITH 

MUNCIE, I NO 

fiVJ\ILJ{dL£ WTROGEN Zio 

AVJilLAbLE PHOSPHORUS 10 ^^ 

nVMILAbLB POTASH ^i^ 



FIG. 46. 
A fertilizer tag. 



the same as Commercial Fertilizers. Many farmers buy com- 
mercial fertilizers and put them on their soil to cover a poor 
job of farming. No farmer is ready to buy fertilizers to put 
on the farm until he has increased his fertility as much as pos- 
sible by drainage, tillage and natural manures. 

Unless these conditions are the best it is possible to make 
them, no amount of commercial fertilizers can produce a good 



143 



144 Soils and Fertilisers 

crop. The average farmer should rather spend his time and 
energy in producing manures on the farm, in getting his soil 
in the proper condition, and in practicing economy of produc- 
tion rather than to spend his time and money in the purchase 
and application of commercial fertilizers. 

Do not get the impression that commercial fertilizers are not 
valuable. They are valuable, and have their proper place in 
farming, and should be used, but they should not be used blindly, 
trusting to luck. The expectation that no matter what kind 
of tillage a soil receives, if it has an application of commercial 
fertilizer an excellent crop will result, is always a disappoint- 
ment. 

Usually the three essential plant foods are found in any com- 
mercial fertilizer. We have various names for these fertilizers, 
depending upon the amount of each of the essential plant foods 
— Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potash — which they contain. For 
example : A fertilizer that contains two pounds of pure nitrogen, 
eight pounds of pure phosphorus and four pounds of potash in 
one hundred pounds of substances is called a 2-8-4 fertilizer. A 
4-6-2 fertilizer would mean that the fertilizer is four per cent 
nitrogen, six per cent phosphorus and two per cent potash. 

Hoiv to Tell the Value of a Fertilizer: We can easily esti- 
mate the value of any commercial fertilizer if we know what 
it contains. Nitrogen is worth on the market about 18 cents 
per pound. Phosphorus and potash are each worth about 4% 
cents per pound. The price of potash is very variable, due to 
the fact that most of it comes from foreign countries; 4^/2 
cents is an average price, but at the date of this publication it 
is costing 25 cents per pound. 

You can readily see that the more nitrogen there is in a fer- 
tilizer, the higher priced it will be. An easy way to figure about 
what a fertilizer is worth is to multiply the first figure of the 
three by four, and add to this sum the other two figures. This 



A PICTURE STORY. 



interest regarding the value of various fertilizers. 




ThP Nitroeen on this plot did very little apparent good. While Nitrogen was needed 
per acre. 




This plot shows what the ground will produce in its present natural state of fertility ; 
an average of ten bushels of wheat per acre. 

PLATE3 12. 



145 



146 . Soils and Fertilizers 

will give you in dollars the approximate value of your fertil- 
izer. For example : a 2-8-4 fertilizer is worth 4X2 + 8 + 4 or 
$20.00 per ton. 

The Amount of Plant Food in a Complete Fertilizer: When 
we buy a ton of complete fertilizer we buy only a small amount 
of real plant food, the remainder of the ton is called "filler." 
It may be of any substance to make out the desired weight. 
Sand, lime, sawdust, or ordinary soil, etc., are used as fillers. 
Since we have to pay freight on our fertilizer it is rather a poor 
practice to buy a complete fertilizer and pay the freight on so 
much useless material. It is much cheaper and easier to buy each 
of the substances — nitrogen, phosphorus and potash — separately 
and mix them on the farm. In this way, we know just what we 
are getting. We can mix them to suit ourselves and we do not 
have to pay others for handling waste material called filler. 

By putting the separate substances together on a barn floor 
and shoveling them over thoroughly they can be mixed prac- 
tically as well as they are mixed at a fertilizer factory. The 
plant foods can be purchased in many compounds, some of which 
have been previously mentioned in this chapter. 

Barnyard Manure: Since barnyard manure is especially 
good, both to supply plant food and to better the structure of 
the soil, it should be placed on that part of the farm where 
neither plant foods nor good structure is present. Such places 
are usually found on the high land, especially if it has been 
cropped. Of course it would be best to cover the entire field, 
if that much manure were to be had, but usually the supply of 
barnyard manure is not sufficient for all of the farm. If a 
large amount of manure is not to be had it is best to spread 
the amount which can be obtained in a thin covering over the 
entire field. A thin coat of manure over a large area will do 
more good than the same amount over a small area. 




A fine growth. The best fertilizer for this ground and crop Lime was applied at 
the rate of two tons to the acre ; Phosphorus at the rate of one thousand pounds of acid 
phosphate per acre, and the manure at the rate of three tons per acre. 




Excellent results and cheap in price. A very economical fertilizer for such land as 
above shown. Fertilizers were applied at the same rate as in plot three. 

PLATE 13. 
147 



148 



Soils and F ertilizers 



Spreading Manure: The only way to spread manure prop- 
erly is by means of a manure spreader. A spreader puts on a 
coat of uniform thickness and even over the entire area. It 
saves labor, and makes the same amount of organic matter cover 
more ground. A farmer who has a manure spreader will have 
more manure to spread than one who does not have a spreader, 
because he will see that all of the waste made on the farm is 
saved. Manure spreaders prevent unnecessary handling which is 
an expensive operation, as well as hard labor. Almost all men 
who have owned manure spreaders call them the best labor saving 
machines on the market. Although this statement may be some- 
what overdrawn, the fact remains that they do save a great 
amount of labor. 




PIG. 47. 
Manure spreader at work. 



Many people make it a practice to haul the manure to the 
fields and pile it in small piles. Later they fork it around over 
the fields. This method makes it necessary to handle the manure 
four times before it is finally placed. At the expense of such 
great labor as this, but little profit can be expected. No value 
is added by repeated handlings except. as it prevents heating, 
which will not occur if it is placed directly on the fields. 




A complete fertilizer with lime added. The phosphorus in this plot as well as in plot 
three made a better crop than that produced m plot four. 




Phosphorus alone improved the crop but without manure and lime it would have to 
be considered a failure or at least unprofitable on such a field as shown above. 

PLATE 14. 
149 



160 Soils and Fertilisers 

Waste of Manure: A great amount of manure is wasted 
every year. Much of this waste can be avoided by proper care. 
One of the greatest sources of waste not usually mentioned is 
the loss caused by not supplying sufficient bedding for the 
animals. The bedding is especially valuable, because it absorbs 
the liquid excrements from the animals. It is even considered 
profitable to use more hay than the animals will consume and 
allow that which they do not relish to be removed from the stable 
floor as manure, for this roughage will prevent the liquid manure 
from escaping. However, it is still more profitable to use straw 
and cheaper roughage for this purpose. Large quantities of 
bedding in the form of straw, stover, etc., make large amounts 
of manure. This bedding is worth all of the labor required to 
use it, for the manure alone, to say nothing of the added cleanli- 
ness and comfort of the animals. On many a farm you can find 
large straw stacks out of doors rottiiig, while the animals in the 
barns are without bedding. Such a condition is indeed a waste- 
ful method of farming. 




Manure alone made a great improvement in the crop but not so much as in plot four 
where lime was also applied. 





Phosphorus and manure should give excellent results. In this case they did not 
improve the crop so much as the manure and lime. 

Judging from all of the above it would seem that this soil needs first, organic matter, 
and second, lime. 

PLATE 15. 
161 



162 



Soils and Fertilisers 



Storage of Manures: It is a very poor practice to store 
manure out of doors during the winter months, to be hauled to 
the fields in the spring. It is better to place it directly upon the 
fields as soon as possible. Where it is impossible to do this and 
where manure is to be stored during the bad winter months a 
shed, at least, should be provided to keep water from soaking 
through the manure heap. 

The following picture shows a manure heap kept under the 
eaves of a building. Do you consider this good business man- 
agement ? Why ? 




FIG. 48. 
A common way of disposing of manure. 



Such a practice is extremely wasteful. This manure heap 
will have lost a great part of its value by spring, besides the 
fact that it looks very unattractive so placed. Manure thrown 
out of the stable window from day to day piles up against the 
stable wall and rots the building. The water which falls from 
the eave of the building not only soaks out most of the plant 
food, but it oftentimes finds its way into the stock well and 



Natural and Artificial Fertilizers 153 

makes the water very unhealthful. Since there is no reason for 
handhng manure in this careless manner, the practice should 
be vigorously discouraged. 

Some people believe that if manure is spread on the field 
during the fall and winter months, that by spring it has lost 
most of its fertility. This is a wrong impression, because most 
of the fertility which leaches out remains in the ground, so 
that the real loss of plant food is practically nothing. 

Realizing the value of the liquid portions of manure, some 
farmers have provided concrete boxes in which to store the 
manure until it can be hauled out upon the fields. 

Green Manures (any crop used to enrich the soil) : With- 
out a doubt, any field that is cropped regularly will lose its 
fertility unless it receives liberal applications of organic matter. 
Nature made the soil fertile by mixing organic matter with the 
little rock particles. So just as the addition of organic matter 
to a soil is Nature's way of keeping up its fertility, so must it 
be our way of keeping the soil rich and fertile. 

A fence corner left alone first grows weeds, then finally 
becomes covered with grass, and at last grows bushes and trees. 
When such a place is finally plowed, its tilth is entirely restored, 
and it closely resembles virgin soil (soil that has never been 
tilled). We say that it is better because it has rested, but 
Nature never permits a soil to rest. Its very name soil depends 
upon its ability to grow crops and to grow them all of the time. 
It has become like virgin soil because the grasses covering the 
surface prevent the rains from washing it during the winter 
and keep the hot sun from baking it during the summer. The 
dead grasses mingle with the soil and soon the entire mass is 



164 Soils and Fertilizers 

loose, full of organic matter and ready again to produce boun- 
tifully any crop adapted to the climatic conditions. As nature 
uses this plan to restore soil fertility, so we must operate by 
growing crops at times when our fields would otherwise be 
barren, and by plowing under such crops as often as possible. 

Nature has furnished us with a great number of crops that 
will supply us with organic matter in abundance. We do not 
have to hunt long for a plant that will be satisfactory in this 
respect ; we have only to pick out the best ones among the many 
that we could use. Ordinarily, it is considered that barnyard 
manure is better than green manure, but since the average 
farmer does not usually have enough barnyard manure to cover 
one-tenth part of his fields, he will have to resort to green 
manure to cover the remainder. 

Although barnyard manure holds first rank as a fertilizer, 
some farmers regard green manure as being equal, if not su- 
perior, in value. Which one is the more valuable is an open 
question, but the truth is not to be denied that green manure is 
valuable to the soil, especially if the soil lacks humus, as most 
soils do. Green manure puts more organic matter in the soil, 
ton for ton, than barnyard manure, but not so much plant food. 
This may account, in part at least, for the differences that 
crops show when green and barnyard manures are applied. 

Ideal Crop for Green Manure: The ideal crop for a green 
manure is one that can be planted during the late summer, and 
will make enough growth to cover the soil during the winter. 
It should grow rapidly, so as to make as much organic matter 
as possible by the following spring. It should have an extensive 
root system, for this helps to open and aerate a soil. To be the 
best manure crop it should belong to the class called Nitrogen 
Gatherers. 



Natural and Artificial Fertilizers 



155 



Rye as a Green Manure Crop: Examine a field of rye in 
the spring, and you will find a perfect mat of roots and leaves. 
The plants cover the ground almost like sod. A crop of such 
plants is worth almost as much plowed under as an equal amount 
of barnyard manure. 

Rye may be sown in the fall, in the cornfield, at hardly any 
expense or trouble. If desired it may be pastured until it is 
plowed under in the spring. Since rye is not a legume it does 
not get nitrogen from the air. Some people say that because 




FIG. 49. ^ , I,. ^ 

Rye : A good green manure crop. It will prevent baking, washing and leaching ot 
this soil during the fall and winter. 



it cannot add food to a soil, it is of no value as a fertilizer. 
But a crop of rye during the fall and early spring saves a great 
amount of plant food from being lost, for instead of letting it 
wash away as fast as it becomes available, the plant builds these 
food elements into its system. 

It gives up this food when it decays, and the crop which is 
planted in the spring gets the benefit of this stored up food. 
A green manure crop prevents the water from washing the soil 



156 Soils and Fertilisers 

during the rainy seasons. It also prevents soil from wind 
blowing. 

Some people object to rye on the ground that it sours the 
soil; however, this objection is not well founded. Barnyard 
manure sours a soil just as quickly as any green manure crop 
will, but no one objects to barnyard manure for this reason. A 
soil that is sour needs drainage, but it does not need less organic 
matter. Rye grows well on poor land, either clay or sandy in 
texture. We little appreciate the wonderful restoring power 
of this plant for our worn-out lands. 

Vetch: We have in vetch a most excellent manuring crop. 
It has all of the excellent qualities of rye and in addition to 
these it has the advantage of being a legume. It grows well 
on the poorest land. It can be sowed late in the summer and 
plowed under the following spring. It has a very extensive 
root system, and brings up much plant food from the subsoil 
to be used by the crop that follows it. Many people consider 
vetch the best green manuring crop now in existence. 

Clovers as Green Manures: Clovers are all good green 
manuring crops, but they are not often plowed under. They are 
usually cut for hay. Many people grow clovers in their crop 
rotation, cut the clover for hay, and «ay they are building up 
their soil by growing clovers. They are only deceiving them- 
selves when they advance such an idea. As much nitrogen as 
is obtained from the air by a clover crop is removed when the 
crop is harvested, and the soil is left poorer in the other plant 
foods. 

Cow Peas and Soy Beans as Green Manure Crops: The 
growing of cow peas and soy beans greatly improves the soil. 
Either crop plowed under is very valuable to increase the organic 
content of the soil. Usually this is not done, for the crops are 
valuable both as forage and seed crops. Even when the crops 



Natural and Artificial Fertilizers 157 

are harvested the roots improve the soil, since they alone leave 
more food and organic matter in the soil than is removed as hay. 
The roots do the soil more good than clover roots, for clover 
roots leave only about one-third as much plant food as they 
obtain from the soil. Also clovers do not feed so much from 
the subsoil as the roots of cow peas, soy beans or vetch. The 
food brought from the subsoil to the surface is very important, 
for it is food that is beyond the reach of many crops, and can 
not be used by them until brought nearer the surface by deep- 
rooted plants. 

REFERENCES. 

A Phosphate Problem for Illinois Land Owners; State Exp. Station^ Ur- 
bana^ Illinois, Cir. 130. 

Floats; Cir. 105, State Experiment Station, Wooster, Ohio. 

Commercial Fertilizers; Farmers Bui. 44, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. 

The Liming of Soils; Farmers Bui. 77, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. 

Barnyard Manures; Farmers Bui. 192, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. 

Barnyard Manures; Farmers Bui. 192, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture. 



158 



Soils and Fertilisers 



EXPERIMENT NO. 36. 

Testing Soil for Acid by Means of Ammonia. 

Many tests for acid in a soil are unreliable and inaccurate. Many others 
are expensive and elaborate. The following experiment is neither inaccurate 
nor expensive. 

Obtain a few cents' worth of concentrated ammonia^ a sample of the 
soil to be tested and two tall, slender glass vessels. Beakers or glass tumblers 
will do, but something having a smaller diameter and taller is better. Stir 
a pint of water with one-fourth pint of the soil to be tested, and pour equal 




FIG. 50. 

Cylinder 1 contains a water solution and lA an ammonia solution of a 
black soil well supplied with lime. 

Cylinder 2 contains a water solution and 2A an ammonia solution of an acid 
black soil. 



amounts of the muddy water into the two vessels. Into one pour a tablespoon- 
ful of ammonia. Let the two beakers stand for an hour, and examine. If 
the soil contains lime there will be no apparent difference between the two 
samples. If the soil contains acid, the beaker to which you added the ammonia 
will appear the darker of the two and will be turbid after the other one has 
become clear. (See Fig. 50.) 

Try this experiment with different kinds of soils, and explain your re- 
sults. Is ammonia an acid? Test it with red litmus paper. What does this 
show jovl} 



Natural and Artificial Fertilizers 169 

EXPERIMENT NO. 37. 

The Effect of Different Kinds of Soil Mulches. 

It is very desirable to keep a soil mulch around a growing crop, as we 
have already learned. But some mulches are very much more efficient than 
others. It is^ therefore, important to be acquainted with the value of various 
soil mulches and to know where each can be applied to an advantage. 

Obtain six empty cans, such as tomato cans, some loam soil and a pair of 
balances. Punch a number of nail holes in the bottom of each can. Fill each 
can two-thirds full of loam soil, and jar each one to settle the soil. Pour 
water in each can until it begins to drip from the bottom. Leave it until the 
soil is dry enough to cultivate, then remove an inch of soil from each can. 
Replace this inch of soil in each can as follows: In one can put an inch of 
sand; in the second use fine clay; in the third use humus, such as barnyard 
manure; in the fourth use fine loam; in the fifth use fine straw or clovei 
chaff; and leave the sixth without anything as a check upon the others. 

Weigh each can of soil and record the entire weight. Leave the cans 
exposed to the same conditions for a day, and reweigh. Compare the loss of 
weight in the various cans. 

Which is the best mulch? Which is the poorest? What is the value of 
a straw mulch around potatoes ? Do you believe that it would be worth while 
to mulch a potato patch with straw or manure after the plants get a good 
growth? Give reasons for your answer. 

EXPERIMENT NO. 38. 

Plant Food Collection. 

Make a collection of all the plant foods you can obtain. Put these in 
bottles and label each. Write to fertilizer companies and obtain samples of 
the fertilizers which they sell. Learn which ones they recommend for corn, 
and why. Learn which ones they recommend for wheat. Learn the amount 
of plant food in each fertilizer and figure out at what price it should sell. 
Compare the price for which the fertilizer sells with the price you figure it to 
be worth. Obtain, if possible, some quicklime, raw lime, air-slaked lime, raw 
rock phosphates and acid phosphates. You can devise many experiments with 
the various plant foods. 




FIG. 1. 




FIG. 2. 



-Ji--|_-|- -t-.|--l- -4. -I 1 -U-- 



■^ 



r-/i- 




V 



M>\nVx\ 



7\ 



' >- >I^ 1 -l'^ -^^-^- -^ - Ji - 



^: 



7t 



it 



//i" id 

^ jL — If " J* — ji — u- u-"-ir Ji '- ufc JL -J - Am,.\ m Ir -^ 






FIG. 3 



PLATE 16. 
160 



Natural and Artificial Fertilizers 



161 



AGRICULTURAL APPARATUS AND HOW IT IS MADE. 

Depth Planting Box. 

A drawing with all dimensions for making the depth planting box is 
given on Plate 16, Fig. 3. The back of the box may be made of either tin or 
wood, tin being preferable. The one shown in the drawing is of tin. The 

sides and bottom are made of l/2-inch soft 
wood, with strips l/g inch thick and % inch 
wide in front. This gives % inch overlap 
on the sides and bottom to hold the glass. 
The student should cut the glass to fit, out 
of a scrap, such as a broken window. When 
the box is completed, and marked in inches 
along one side, as shown, fill with soil and 
jar slightly to settle it. Fill to the line 
marked SL. Now lay the box on its back 
and carefully slide out the glass cover. 
Place six healthy looking kernels of corn in 
the soil, with the germ side up, as shown in 
Figure 51. Press them into the soil until 
the glass will slide back into place without 
disturbing them. Replace the glass, and 
hang up the box. Keep the soil moist and 
observe the results. In a like manner try 
all kinds of common seeds and make a table 
in your note-book, showing proper planting 
depth for each, time required for germina- 
tion, etc. 



Alcohol Lamp from a Tin Box. 

An alcohol lamp is sometimes useful 
around the home, and is needed in the labora- 
tory very often. Alcohol produces a flame 
It can be used in direct contact with vessels and 




FIG. 51. 
Depth planting- box in use. 



almost colorless and very hot 
does not blacken them with soot 

To make an alcohol lamp, obtain any small tin box, from one-half pint 
to a pint in capacity, and having a tight-fitting lid. Cut a small, round hole in 
the lid and file it smooth. Obtain a round wick at the store, or make one by 



162 Soils and Fertilisers 

doubling several strands of common wrapping twine. Force the wick through 
the holcj leaving plenty of wick inside the box. As soon as it is filled with 
alcohol your lamp is ready for service. The more wick you pull through the 
hole the larger your flame will be. Plate 16^ Fig. 2 shows a lamp made from 
a tin box. An old ink bottle may be used instead of the tin box. 

Specimen Mount. 

Make a specimen mount as shown in Plate 16, Fig. 1. Such a mount 
may be made from any shallow pasteboard box, having a tight-fitting lid. 
On the lid lay out with a ruler and pencil a line entirely around the box I/2 
inch from the edges. With a sharp knife cut on this line, thus removing the 
center of the lid. Cut a piece of glass a little larger than this hole to fit 
underneath it, inside of the box. Now fill the box with several layers of clean, 
white cotton. Carefully lay the specimen which you are to mount on the 
cotton, and lay the glass over it. Then put on the lid and fasten it all around 
by pushing pins through the sides. The specimen in this mount will keep 
perfectly for a long time. The cotton furnishes a nice background, and also 
keeps the specimens dry. 

Nothing is more interesting to school children than to make a number 
Df these mounts and preserve specimens in them. Plants, seeds, insects, cocoons, 
etc., may all be preserved in this manner. Have the pupil put a card inside 
the mount upon which is written the name of the mount, his name and the date. 
Let the pupil design and make his own card. 

The mount shown in Plate 16 is 1 inch deep, 7 inches wide and 12 inches 
long. This makes a very good size. 



Natural and Artificial Fertilizers 163 

QUESTIONS AND PROBLEMS. 

1. How many square feet in 1 acre? If there are 35^000 tons of nitrogen 

evenly distributed over 1 acre of soil^ how much on 1 sq. ft.? 

2. What is a 2-10-5 fertilizer worth per ton? 

3. How many pounds of nitrogen in a ton of 4-8-4 fertilizer? How many 

pounds of phosphorus? How many pounds of potash? 

4. What would a ton of the above be worth with the nitrogen worth 18c per 

pound and the other two each worth 4I/2C per pound? 

5. What would a ton of the above be worth figured according to the rule 

you have learned? How much difference between the two answers? 
Which is the more accurate way to figure the value of a fertilizer? 

6. If 56 lbs. of quicklime is equal in value to 100 lbs. of raw lime^ how 

much quicklime is equivalent to 82 lbs. of raw lime? 

7. If 56 lbs. of quicklime is equivalent to 72 lbs. of air-slaked lime, how 

many pounds of quicklime is equal to a ton of air-slaked lime? 

8. What is a direct fertilizer? An indirect fertilizer? 

9. What is another name for raw rock phosphate ? 

10. From where is raw rock phosphate obtained? 

1 1 . From where is nitrogen obtained ? 

12. . Give one good method of applying rock phosphate.^ 

13. What is a legume? 

14. If a ton of fertilizer contains 600 lbs. of filler, and the freight rate ii. 

10c per 100 lbs., how much could a farmer save on freight alone, by 
mixing 10 tons of fertilizer himself? 

15. If nitrate of soda is 14% nitrogen, how many pounds would you have 

to buy to get 80 lbs. of pure nitrogen? 

16. If dried blood is 18% nitrogen, how many pounds would you have to buy 

to get 80 lbs. of pure nitrogen? 

17. What do you consider the most valuable green manuring crop? Why? 

What green manuring crops are used most in your locality? 



CHAPTER X 

THE HOTBED AND WATER SUPPLY. 

In the country and village school there is always to be con- 
fronted the problem of successfully managing a school garden. 
The hotbed, in a great measure, will help to solve this problem. 
It can be used during the early spring months while there is yet 
school, and by means of it a great many real problems can be 
demonstrated. Problems in soils, plants, conditions necessary 
for life, and economic production may be worked out and 
pushed to completion. Also the making of the hotbed itself is 
an excellent Manual Training lesson for the boys. Another 
great advantage is that work in the hotbed may continue re- 
gardless of weather conditions. In fact, the importance of having 
a hotbed in connection with the school course in Agriculture is 
of so much value that it will be given careful consideration here. 

Size of the Hotbed: In constructing a hotbed the first thing 
to consider is the size best to use. The hotbed may be 6 feet by 
6 feet, or 6 feet by 9 feet, or 6 feet by 12 feet, or larger. For a 
small school a hotbed 3 feet by 6 feet might be sufficient, but 
6 feet by 6 feet would be a very convenient size for growing 
the ordinary variety of plants. The plants grown in such a hot- 
bed may be taken by the boj^s and girls to the home gardens, 
where they can be cared for until maturity, even though the 
school is not in session. In a hotbed larger than 6 feet hy 6 feet 
some plants, such as radishes and lettuce, might be left to mature 
without removal from the bed. These things should be care- 
fully worked out by the class and teacher before actual work is 
begun. It is a good plan to know beforehand just what you are 
going to plant and how much room you will need. 

164 



The Hotbed and Water Supply 165 

Location of the Hotbed: In choosing the location for the 
hotbed, select a rather high place on the south side of some build- 
ing, as close to the school as convenient. 

It should be on high ground to insure drainage, for if it 
were low the pit which must be dug would serve as a reservoir 
for the heavy rains, and your plants would not grow. The south 
side of a building allows the plants to receive more sunshine 
and, at the same time, shuts oif a great deal of cold wind. 

Construction of the Pit: In preparing the pit for a bed 6 
feet by 6 feet, the hole should be dug 18 inches deep and a few 
inches larger than the outside dimensions of the bed. Care 
should be exercised to get the pit square and of even depth. 
If the hotbed is to be set exceptionally early, that is, before the 
middle of March, it is better to dig the pit 2 feet deep. The 
deeper the pit the more heat you can store up and the longer the 
growing season will be. It is better, if possible, to dig the pit in 
the fall before the ground freezes. 

Construction of the Frame: The frame should be made of 
two inch material, with the back board eight or ten inches higher 
than the front. If the back board is eighteen inches high, make 
the front board ten inches high. This will give the top a slant 
to the south, so that the sun's rays will pass through the glass 
less obliquely. The ends will be eighteen inches wide at one 
end and ten inches wide at the other. The back and front boards 
should be beveled so that the sash will fit properly. 

The sides and ends should be fastened at the corners by 
means of angle irons and bolts. If fastened in this manner 
they can be removed, and the hotbed put away during the latter 
part of the summer. 

If fastened at the corners with angle irons, two by four posts 
should be driven at each corner to hold the shape of the bed and 
keep it from moving. 



166 



Soils and Fertilizers 



The frame should not be placed until the pit is filled within 
two inches of the surface of the soil. This places the bottom of 
the frame two inches below the surface. It is well to pack some 
dirt around the outside of the frame, so that after it is placed 
the surface water will run away. 

A piece of two inch material should be placed from the 
front to the back three feet from either end, and even with the 
top. This acts both as a brace and as a support for the sash. 
See Fig. 52. 




FIG. 52. 
Sash support and braces across a hotbed. 



The Sash: Window sashes may be obtained in various sizes, 
so in order that your hotbed will fit the sashes you use it is best 
to obtain them before beginning to work. Then you can easily 
adjust the size of the hotbed to fit the sashes. 

You can usually purchase window sashes at your nearest 
lumber yard. Oft-times you can obtain damaged sashes at a very 
small cost, which will be just as good for your purpose. Some- 
times you can obtain old sashes and glass from home at no 
expense. 



The Hotbed and Water Supply 167 

A six-foot hotbed will require two sashes three feet wide and 
six feet long. These sashes should be double glass sashes. If 
single glass sashes are used, extra covering of heavy canvas must 
be provided during cold nights. The sashes should be painted 
white, both to preserve them and to reflect as much light as pos- 
sible through the glass. 

Filling the Bed: A hotbed must be supplied with artificial 
heat during the early spring months. Hot water pipes may be 
used to supply this heat, but they are inconvenient as well as 
expensive. Many other methods might be used, but horse 
manure is a cheaper source of heat, easier to get, and requires 
less care after it is started than any other method of heating 
the bed. 

To prepare the manure for the hotbed, gather fresh manure 
from the stable and mix it with one-fourth its bulk of litter. 
Pile the entire mass under a shed and allow it to ferment for 
about three days. At the end of the third day fork the mass 
over and leave until the fifth day. On the fifth day repeat this 
operation, and on the eighth day place the manure in the hotbed 
pit as follows: 

First place in the bed a layer of manure about nine inches 
deep, and pack it very firmly by tamping. On this place suc- 
ceeding layers about six inches thick, and firm each thoroughly 
as before. In this manner fill the hotbed pit within one inch of 
the surface of the ground. Then place the frame of the bed as 
previously explained. 

Soil to Be Placed Above the Manure: Now that the source 
of heat has been provided for, we must supply a soil for the 
plants. This soil should be about six inches thick over the 
manure, and should contain a good supply of plant food. A 
rich loam, such as is found in the woods or in the average garden, 
is a good soil to use, but if it can not be readily obtained, com- 
post should be used. 



168 Soils and Fertilisers 

Compost is soil prepared by piling up alternate layers of 
leaves, or sod, and manure in the open, and leaving them for 
six months before using. This material is screened, and the rich 
loam used in the hotbed. 

As soon as the soil is placed on the manure, and leveled, the 
sash should be put on, and the whole bed allowed to heat. There 
will be a gradual rise in the temperature for awhile, and then the 
temperature will slowly drop. As soon as the temperature 
begins to drop the seed should be obtained for planting. 

When the temperature falls below ninety degrees seed may 
be planted, although seventy degrees is a good average tem- 
perature to maintain. This temperature may be maintained by 
ventilation, or raising the sash. On warm days the sash may 
be removed entirely. The plants should be watered thoroughly 
once or twice each week, the amount of water depending upon 
the weather. 

If it is desired, the hotbed may be used in the fall. If set 
about the middle of September, fresh vegetables may be had, 
such as lettuce, radishes, etc., until late in the winter. If the 
temperature begins to get too low, a box filled with fresh manure 
placed inside of the frame will furnish heat. 

As a school problem, the hotbed can sometimes be used as 
a cold frame after the manure has ceased to heat. However, if 
it is desired not to start plants until April or the first of May, 
a cold frame can be constructed. This is similar to a hotbed, 
but much simpler and easier to construct. Sometimes plants are 
removed from the hotbed and hardened in a cold frame. 

A cold frame is constructed and managed the same as a hot- 
bed, with the exception of the pit. No pit is dug for a cold 
frame, but a layer of rich soil about six inches thick is put inside 
the frame in which the plants grow. 



The Hotbed and Water Supply ^ 169 

- Cloth may be used to cover the frame at night, or during 
cold weather, if sashes are not to be had. Sashes, however, are 
to be preferred. See Fig. 53. 

THE WATER SUPPLY ON THE FARM. 

Health on the Farm: Of all classes of people, the farmer 
has the best chance to have healthy surroundings. He has fresh 
air, sunlight, and quiet. He is sufficiently separated from his 
neighbors so that their unsanitary conditions need not influence 
the conditions of his own home. But with all of these blessings, 
the farmer is too prone to take healthy conditions for granted. 



FIG. 53. 
Cold frame covered with cloth. 



and because he is not so closely watched by the board of health 
he sometimes permits himself and his family to live under un- 
desirable conditions. While this condition often applies to the 
farmer and his family, it more frequently applies to the live- 
stock on the farm. A few years ago people did not regard it 
as worth while to pay much attention to sanitary conditions for 
livestock, but recent study has changed this idea. There are 



170 ^oils and Fertilizers 

still a few who make fun of the idea of preparing sanitary quar- 
ters for such animals as the hog. Even though a hog apparently 
enjoys mud and filth, he will respond to sanitary, clean quarters 
by being healthier and more vigorous. 

Upon the health of animals in a large measure depends the 
health of people, so when we provide sanitary conditions among 
animals we are aiding in making the human race more hardy. 
Many diseases of animals are directly contagious (catching) to 
man. Veterinary Science has done much to promote human 
health by promoting healthy conditions among animals. 

A Sanitary Problem for the Farmer: One of the greatest 
sanitary agents for both man and animal, under the control of 
the farmer, is clear running water. To obtain this water, pure 
and uncontaminated, is the farmer's first problem. The subject 
of water supply properly belongs with the study of soils, and 
will therefore be considered here as an agent toward better con- 
ditions on the farm. 

How Disease Is Carried: Disease in both man and animal 
finds a ready means of transportation in water; therefore, it is 
to the interest of everyone in a community that each farm be 
supplied with plenty of pure water. Such diseases as Typhoid 
Fever and Scarlet Fever in man. Anthrax and Hog Cholera in 
animals, are known to be very often transmitted by means of 
contaminated water. Not only are they carried from farm to 
farm, but even from the farm to the city. 

Bacteria as a Source of Contamination: The contamination 
of water is produced by very small organisms called bacteria. 
Bacteria are very small germs which get into water and live on 
the mineral and organic matter present. The principal way that 
bacteria can get into water is for them to find lodgment in the 
soil and be picked up by the water which falls as rain. The first 
few inches of a soil abound in bacteria, depending upon the 



The Hotbed and Water Supply 



171 



organic matter present and the aeration to which the soil has 
been subjected. Deeper in the soil the germ life becomes less 
and less, until at a depth of a few feet the soil is usually free 
from all bacterial life. We may conclude, therefore, that the 
bacterial content of water is directly dependent upon the germ 
content of soil. As we are not able to keep the soil free from 
harmful bacteria, we should avoid drinking water which has 
collected these dangerous germs. This helps us to understand 
why surface water or water from shallow wells is not safe. 




FIG. 54. 
How disease is carried. This beautiful spring is contaminated with typhoid 
fever germs. 



Classes of Water: As has been explained, water falling 
upon a soil is divided into two classes — that which passes over 
the soil is Surface Water, and that which passes through it is 
Ground Water. When the water falls upon the soil it becomes 
saturated with all kinds of bacterial life, but that water which 
sinks through a soil soon loses its germs, leaving them deposited 
in the first few feet of soil. This ground water, as it is called, 
upon reaching an underground reservoir is generally considered 
pure water. If, however, we tap this water supply by digging a 



172 Soils and Fertilisers 

well, surface water is very likely to get into the well. If surface 
water does find an entrance to the well it usually carries not only 
bacteria with it, but organic matter as well, and the bacteria can 
readily grow and multiply in this organic matter. In a very 
short time such a well becomes entirely unfit for use. 

The Dug Well: If we must have dug wells for our water 
supply, we should be very careful to exclude surface water. This 
can be done only by locating the well on a high point and prop- 
erly protecting the sides and top. This can be done by the use 
of a large sewer tile, or a watertight cement curb. The curbing 
should extend several inches above the level of the ground. After 
the pump is set the curb should be provided with a strong, im- 
movable cover. Gravel or gravel and clay should be hauled and 
filled in around the curb to the height of the cover; this will 
provide a water-shed to drain away surface and waste water. 
Many farmers select a low place to dig a well, because they 
will not have to dig so deep. This is an exceedingly poor prac- 
tice to follow. 

Again we can very often find the well, especially a stock 
well, very close to a stagnant pond, or a pile of decaying organic 
matter, such as manure. The impure water from the decaying 
material and from the pond seeps through the soil and into the 
well. The first water may be purified in passing through the soil, 
but before long the soil becomes filthy with organic material 
and with bacteria. Soon the water which sinks into the well is 
not purified, and is no better than the water found at the surface. 
The accompanying illustration shows a condition not uncommon. 
(See Fig. 55.) 

Giving Animals Impure Water: There is no more excuse 
for giving the animals on the farm impure water than for the 
farmer himself to drink impure water. How often does the 
farmer say that the water in the stock well is not good to drink, 
yet continues day after day giving the same water to his live 
stock. Such a farmer has no reason to complain when his ani- 



The Hotbed and Water Supply 



173 



mals become diseased, for his own hands have furnished the 
means for the disease to become estabhshed. 

Insj)ecti7ig a Well: In inspecting a well on a farm, look 
first at its location, and see if there is any probable som-ce of 
contamination. Then examine the curbing and covering of the 
well. Finally examine the water for undesirable characteristics. 





FIG. 55. 

Unprotected stock well. An open well with practically no cover is located under this 

shed. What do you think would be the condition of a well located 

so near this decaying- material? 

The most undesirable thing readily found in water is organic 
matter, and water containing much organic matter may at once 
be condemned as unfit for use. 

Testing Water for Organic Matter: Oft-times organic mat- 
ter may be detected by the odor. Perfectly pure water is odor- 



174 Soils and Fertilizers 

less. The sense of smell is very delicate, and this method will 
sometimes enable a person to detect impure water. Let a sample 
of water stand in a glass vessel for awhile and examine for 
sediment (substance settling in the bottom of the vessel). If 
sediment is found it can usually be classed either as organic 
matter, or sand. A simple and at all times a reliable test for 
organic matter may be made as follows: 

Obtain a clean glass vessel that you can heat, and fill it half 
full of the water to be tested. A test tube is very good for this 
purpose. Add a few drops of Sulphuric Acid and sufficient 
potassium permanganate solution to color the water a very light 
red. Heat the solution until it boils gently. If the color changes 
to a brownish tint, it indicates the presence of organic matter. 
(Potassium permanganate crystals may be obtained at any drug 
store. A few cents' worth will be sufficient. The solution is 
made by dissolving the crystals in water. ) 

Repeat this experiment, using water in which you have 
placed organic matter, such as bits of paper. 

Water which contains organic matter is never safe to use. 
There are other impurities often found in drinking water, and 
we will learn about some of them in this chapter. Whenever 
there is any doubt about the purit}^ of drinking water it should 
be analyzed by an expert, for we cannot depend upon its taste 
and appearance to detect harmful bacteria. 

Clean, pure water is one of the greatest blessings to human 
life, and we should cultivate the habit of drinking water in 
abundance. There is no single agency that will do more to 
keep our bodies in a good healthy condition than plenty of clean 
water used both internally and externally. 

Mud-Holes on the Farm: Remember that little ponds and 
mud-holes, such as hog-wallows, are a disgrace to a farm, and 
are not only places to breed disease among animals, but a source 



The Hotbed and Water Supply 175 

of coBtamination of well water. If cool, fresh, clean water is 
always kept for the farm animals, a long step has been taken 
towards keeping them healthy. 

The following are some simple tests of water that will prove 
interesting and valuable: 

NOTE. — Almost all drinking water will show the presence 
of some of the following mineral substances. They are not con- 
sidered harmful (when present in a reasonable amount), so you 
need not feel alarmed if your well water contains these sub- 
stances. 

Test for Chlorides: To a vessel one-half full of th'? water 
to be tested, add a few drops of nitric acid and then a little 
nitrate of silver. If there is any cloudiness the water contains 
traces of chlorides. 

Test for Sulphates: To a vessel one-half full of water add 
a few drops of Barium Chloride Solution. If there is a whitish 
precipitate, it shows the presence of a sulphate in the water. 

Test for Lime Compounds: To a vessel one-half full of 
water add a few drops of ammonium oxalate solution. A white 
precipitate denotes the presence of lime compounds. 

NOTE. — All of the above chemicals may be obtained at 
the drug store at a very small cost. 



176 Soils and Fertilizers 

EXPERIMENT NO. 39. 

The Weight of Soil Per Cubic Foot. 

If soil contained no open spaces between the soil grains, but consisted of 
solid rock particles, it would weigh about 165 pounds per cubic foot. But a 
cubic foot of soil never weighs this much, because it does not consist entirely 
of rock particles, and besides it contains considerable open space, called pores. 

Organic matter in a soil is lighter than rock particles, consequently, as a 
rule, the more organic matter in a soil the less it weighs. Therefore, by 
weighing samples of different air-dry soils we can, in a general way, compare 
their pore space and the amount of organic matter to be found in each. Do 
this as follows: 

Measure some vessel that is rather large arid that has a smooth top. 
Compute its volume. Fill this vessel with a sample of the soil to be tested, 
and jar to settle the soil. Compact the soil by letting the vessel drop from a 
certain given height a number of times. After settling the soil, finish filling 
the vessel and level the top with a straight edge, such as a ruler. Weigh and 
record the weight. Figure the weight per cubic foot from this weight. Empty 
the vessel and refill with the next sample. Proceed as before. In compacting 
the soil, drop the vessel the same distance the same number of times for each 
sample. Tabulate all data, and compare the results of the weights with the 
color and texture of the soils tested. 

EXPERIMENT NO. 40. 

Judging a Farm. 

We consider it important to judge and score corn, cattle, horses, and 
indeed, all products on the farm, whether they are plants or animals. How 
much more important it must be to score and judge the farm itself, from which 
all plant and animal life must come. 

There are so many points to be considered in buying or selecting a farm, 
that unless an individual goes over the entire farm, point by point, there are 
many things which may escape his notice. 

In order to examine a farm thoroughly, it is oft-times necessary to follow 
some sort of guide, not necessarily like the one given here, but one having a 
similar purport. The outline or score-card given here is roerely suggestive, 
and may be modified by the instructor to suit local conditions. 



The Hotbed and Water Supply 



177 



We must realize first that our score-card depends entirely upon the kind 
of farming to be pursued. A farm that would be too small for a general 
purpose farm might be entirely too large for a truck farm. Also remember 
that the farm is a factory from which we manufacture finished products in the 
form of plants and animals from the raw material — soil. If the raw material 
is not rich and fertile, then our whole system must of necessity fail. So look 
carefully to the soil of a farm, for it is upon the soil that the farm is builded. 
In using the following score-card, give special attention to the soil conditions, 
such as drainage, color, texture, depth of soil, kind of crops produced, acidity, 
and to the general rotation which has been previously practiced. 

Go to some farm near the school, and make a thorough examination of 
the place. Fill out the following score-card to the best of your ability, then 
have it corrected and fill in the corrected score. Compare the two. 

Write a discussion of points which the score-card does not cover. 





Perfect 
Score 


Student 
Score 


Corrected 
Score 


Amount of 
Errors 


(a) Size 


3 








(b) Fields— Arrangement 


6 








(c) Surface 


6 








(d) Fertility 


12 








(e) Physical condition of soils 


12 








(f) Drainage 


8 








(g) Farm improvements 


20 








(h) Healthfulness 


4 








(i) Location 


25 








(j) Water supply 


4 








Total 


100 









(a) Size. The size of a farm determines in a large measure the kind of 
farming that can be attempted. A farm is oft-times too small for the kind of 
farming attempted, and almost as often too large. For example, we sometimes 
find grain farming practiced where dairying would be more profitable, or we 
find dairying carried on where horticulture could be better practiced. Re- 
member that in inspecting any farm, the size of the farm and the kind of 
farming must correspond. 



178 Soils and Fertilizers 

(b) Field Arrangement. Fields should be arranged so that there is as 
little loss of space as possible, in the form of lanes, odd sized corners, etc. 
They should be so sized that none of them are excessively small, and they 
should be so joined that each field could be reached without driving any un- 
necessary distance. The farm should be laid out so that every field may be 
reached without passing through any other field. 

(c) Surface. The fields should be rather level for grain farming, 
although if slightly rolling natural drainage is partially provided for. If cer- 
tain kinds of farming is practiced the ground does not need to be so level. 

(d) Fertility. Fertility is the very basis of successful farming, and 
consequently should be looked to carefully. We desire any farm to be in 
the highest state of natural fertility possible. 

(e) Physical Condition of Soils. Physical condition determines whether 
a soil is an early or late soil, whether it is easy or difficult to till, and the ne- 
cessity of using soil amendments. 

(f) Drainage. Every foot of a farm should be well drained, either 
naturally or artificially. Poorly drained land means a poor farm. 

(g) Farm Improvements. Farm improvements refers to the fences, 
buildings, roads, ditches and a host of details which each particular kind of 
farming demands. 

(h) Health fulness. Healthfulness is a very important thing for con- 
sideration. Things which might influence healthfulness are: disagreeable in- 
dustries carried on close by; streams into which filth is emptied from some 
source upstream; swamps adjoining or on a farm, and the climate, which in 
some places is unhealthful, especially for certain individuals. 

(i) Location. A desirable farm will be on good roads, near a market 
and close to public institutions, as churches, schools, etc. 

(j) Water Supply. On an irrigated farm the water supply is all im- 
portant. On a farm where irrigation is not necessary the wells should be in- 
spected carefully. Springs and running streams are valuable sources of water 
supply. 



180 Soils and Fertilizers 

AGRICULTURAL APPARATUS AND HOW IT IS MADE. 
Hon) to Make a Hotbed. 

Instructions for making a hotbed must be rather general^ for the size, 
designs and material of diiferent hotbeds will vary. 

The drawing on the opposite page shows a concrete hotbed. This makes 
an ideal piece of work^ and if properly constructed will be almost indestructible. 

If as a class you cannot or do not care to make the bed of concrete, make 
one of wood, as follows: 

Obtain material two inches thick and of any convenient Avidth. Cut pieces 
for the front and back to the desired length, outside measurement. Fasten 
the boards which you have cut for the back together by nailing one by four 
inch strips crosswise at regular distances. Remember that the back of your 
hotbed is to be higher than the front and that it is to extend two or more 
inches below the surface of the ground. Thus if you want your hotbed to be 
eighteen inches high at the back side you should make the back board at least 
twenty inches wide. 

In a like manner fasten boards for the front together. Now make the 
ends the width of the back and then rip them so that while they remain the 
width of the back at one end they will be the width of the front at the other. 

Fasten the four sides together, as mentioned previously, by means of nails 
or angle irons. Bevel the back and front edges of the frame with the plane 
until a straight edge placed across from the front to the back makes a good 
fit across both sides. 

On the outside of the frame of the bed nail a strip so that it extends about 
an inch above the edge entirely across the front. This strip is to keep the 
window frames in place. 

One by two inch strips should be nailed across from the front to the 
back, as shown at the beginning of this chapter. They can be set inside by 
nailing through from the front and back, but the better way is to cut a notch 
and fit them in flush with the top. 

If the bed is large, stakes may be driven dpwn at the corners on the inside 
of the bed to prevent it from moving. Design your own hotbed, make out a 
bill of lumber and figure the costs of the same.' 



The Hotbed and Water Supply 181 

QUESTIONS AND PROBLEMS. 

1. How many square feet in a hotbed six feet wide and nine feet long? 

2. How many loads of material will it take to fill the above hotbed to a depth 

of two feet^ if a load of material measures one square yard? 

3. How many dozen radishes could be grown in one-third of the above hot- 

bed if each radish occupied two square inches? 

4. If the temperature outside of a hotbed is 56.3 degrees and the tempera- 

ture inside is 82.6 degrees^ what is the diiference in temperature? 

5. If muslin is worth 12 cents per square yard how much would it cost 

to cover a cold frame six feet wide and twelve feet long? 

6. If it costs 98 cents a foot to dig a driven well how much would a well 

cost 190 feet deep? 

7. Give some general rules for examining a water supply. 

8. Explain how you would locate a dug well. 

9. Do you think that it is good business to give animals impure water? 

10. Explain how to fill a hotbed. 

1 1 . What is compost ? How is it prepared ? 

12. Why do we need a pit in a hotbed? 

13. What is the difference between a hotbed and a cold frame? 
11. What are bacteria? 

15. Explain some of the ways hj which bacteria get into wells. 

REFERENCES. 

Nolan's 100 Lessons in Agriculture; published by Row Peterson and Co. 

Bacteria and Soil Fertility; Circular 7, State Experiment Station, Ames, 
Iowa. 

Soil Treatment for the Forcing House; Circular 57. State Experiment 
Station, Wooster, Ohio. 

Frames as a Factor in Truck Growing; U. S. Department of Agriculture. 
Farmers Bulletin 460. 



CHAPTER XI 

STUDIES IN CONCRETE. 

In studjang soils, the three substances, Lime, Sand, and 
Clay, deserve a careful consideration. We have discussed each 
of them separately at various times, but we are now to observe 
a new and wonderful property which these three substances 
have when combined under certain conditions. Lime, Clay and 
Sand, when properly mixed, heated and ground, produce a com- 
pound known as cement. Cement when mixed with water and 
left to itself hardens into a stone-like substance almost inde- 
structible. 

History of Cement: Although various kinds of cement and 
limes have been used for hundreds of years, very little was known 
about them until quite recently. In order that we may under- 
stand lime and cement, we will discuss briefly each of them 
here. 

As the use of lime began with the very earliest man — the 
cave man — so also very early man learned to make and use 
cement. This cement was not the cement of the modern mills, 
but cement nevertheless. It is probable that the first cement 
used hy man was produced by nature, and it remained only for 
man to profit thereby. 

Ancient Cement: It is recorded that the ancient Romans 
found upon the mountain sides a substance which had been 
mixed, melted and thrown out of a volcano. This substance in 
appearance was a mixture of pulverized burned clay and sand, 
reddish brown in color. When mixed with water it had the prop- 

182 



Studies in Concrete 



183 



erty of hardening and appearing like stone. It was also found 
that after this substance hardened it was unaffected by water 
and remained rock-like in its composition. 

The Stability of Natural Cements: So in Rome today there 
are structures of concrete standing unharmed, after more than 
eighteen hundred years of wear, although merely made out of 
a natural product — a kind of volcanic sand. Even now im- 
mense beds of this volcanic sand may be found, and it is still 
used in the construction of modern Roman buildings. The 
manufactured cement of todaj^ is but little different from this 

natural product except that it is 
more uniform in its composition 
and better mixed. 

How Quicklime Is Made: The 
lime which goes to make the mod- 
ern cement is taken from the 
ground as natural limestone, the 
kind which we learned about in our 
chapter on fertilizers, and which 
you can possibly find in the field 
or on the road. This limestone is 
placed in huge kilns and burned. 
The burning destroys its hard na- 
ture, and makes what is known as 
quicklime — -you have no doubt seen 
it used to make whitewash or plastering. 

Quicklime: Quicklime has the property of uniting with 
water, becoming very hot and changing into a white smooth 
paste. This process is called slaking. The paste, after stand- 
ing a day or more, is mixed with sand and is used for various 
purposes, as plastering, laying brick, etc. This combination of 
quicklime, water and sand is a cement, although usually referred 
to as "Mortar." It is not so serviceable or enduring as the 




FIG. 56. 
Lime kiln. 



184 Soils and Fertilizers 

cements made by modern machinery, and is being largely re- 
placed by the newer product. 

The Newer Cement: It was discovered in 1756 that a cer- 
tain impm^e, clayey limestone when bm-ned and slaked would' 
harden into a solid mass under water as well as in air. 

Portland Cement: The manufacture of cement began at 
this time and improvement was rapid. Men experimented with 
different materials in various proportions until they finally pro- 
duced a uniform true cement. This cement was given the name 
Portland Cement because when used it closely resembled a stone 
obtained from the Portland Quarries of England. Portland 
Cement has come to be a general term, and we usually refer to 
any good cement as Portland Cement. 

Hydraulic Cement: Hydraulic Cement refers to any cement 
that will harden under water. Thus, Portland Cement has 
hydraulic properties, but lime usually does not have such prop- 
erties. When slaked lime, left under water, hardens so that 
you cannot dent it with a little pressure of the thumb it is called 
Hydraulic Lime. It is in fact an impure lime. 

Manufacture of Cement: The digging of the raw materials 
is the first step towards the actual manufacture of cement. The 
limestone used is quarried from open pits and crushed in a huge 
stone crusher. From the crusher it goes on board cars for ship- 
ment to the cement plant. 

The sand and clay to be mixed with this limestone are ob- 
tained pure and fused as slag from the steel mills. The slag is 
broken up and shipped direct to the concrete mills. It is almost 
pure sand and clay. 

Grinding the Raw Product: In the Concrete Mills, the slag 
and limestone are each ground into a very fine powder, after 
which they are properly mixed and ground together. Then they 



Studies in Concrete 185 

are burned at a very high temperature until clinkers are formed, 
very much like the ones you find on the furnace grates. 

The clinkers are then ground into a very fine powder and 
sold as cement. 

What Concrete Is: In using this cement, as before men- 
tioned, it is mixed with sand, gravel and stones of various kinds, 
called aggregates. The mixture is known as "Concrete." The 
cement is a sort of a liquid glue, sticking the stones together 
and making of them one solid rock. If the stones are soft, or 
will sliver, or are mixed with dirt the concrete will crumble and 
be worthless. If the cement and aggregates (stones) are prop- 
erly mixed and the aggregates are of a good quality the concrete 
will usually be entirely satisfactory. 

Importance of Concrete: The importance of Concrete on 
the farm cannot be overestimated. It could profitably be used 
in the making of so many farm conveniences that we will not 
enumerate them here. However, with a little knowledge of 
concrete and its use it is safe to say the average farmer will use 
it in the future much more than he has heretofore. The amount 
of work to be done in concrete in the school depends entirely 
upon school conditions, but it is certain that no school can afford 
to neglect it entirely. 

What the Schools Can Do: Walks could be placed around 
the school buildings; seats could be made on the playground; in 
fact, many uses can be found for concrete which will furnish 
real, practical laboratory work for a class. It is hoped that more 
work will be done than is given here, but at least the concrete 
exercises at the last of this chapter should be attempted. 



186 Soils and Fertilizers 

EXPERIMENT NO. 4-1. 
To Test for Carbonates. 

Calcium Carbonate, called also Natural Limestone, is the most impor- 
tant ingredient in concrete. While the following experiment does not deal 
directly with concrete, the knowledge which it gives regarding carbonates is 
very valuable. 

Natural limestone found in soils is frequently referred to as carbonate 
of lime. This carbonate of lime, or any other carbonate, sweetens a soil and 
neutralizes any acid that may be present. So if we can determine the pres- 
ence of carbonates in a soil we may know that such a soil does not contain 
acid. If acids were present, they would immediately decompose the car- 
bonates. 

Most plants, especially legumes, require a soil which contains carbonates, 
so to know whether or not carbonates are present is very important. We can 
perform a very simple experiment to determine their presence. 

To do this, obtain some concentrated hydrochloric acid (muriatic) and 
a sample of the soil to be tested. Take a small mass of the soil and mould 
it cup-shaped in the hand. Pour into this cup-shaped soil a few drops of the 
acid. If carbonates are present, it will be shown by a bubbling, or effer- 
vescence. If, when you pour on the acid, you do not notice the formation 
of bubbles of gas, test more carefully by putting a little soil into a test 
tube and pouring over it a little of the acid. Place the mouth of the tube to 
the ear, and by listening carefully, if there is any effervescence at all, it can 
be readily detected. If there is none you can conclude, with a reasonable 
degree of assurance, that the soil is acid and is in need of a soil amendment, 
such as lime. 

This is a very convenient test, as it can be performed out in the field 
and is inexpensive. It is well when testing in a field by this method to test 
both the surface and the subsoil, as a subsoil that contains carbonates will be 
a source of constant supply for a surface soil. The carbonate in some soils 
can be readily detected by the presence of large numbers of limestone pebbles. 
Take some small stones from the field and pour hydrochloric acid on them. 
Do they show the presence of carbonates? 

Write the results of this experiment in your note-book. 



Studies in Concrete 187 

EXPERIMENT NO. 42. 
_^- Carbon Dioxide. 

When mortar sets, as the process of hardening is called, it absorbs carbon 
dioxide gas from the atmosphere. If it were not for carbon dioxide this most 
valuable property of burned lime would not be exercised. Also carbon dioxide 
is all important for the part it plays in plant growth. 

We have learned that about 50 per cent of the solid part of a plant is 
carbon, and this carbon is taken from the air in the form of carbon dioxide. 
The following experiment will enable you to make some carbon dioxide gas 
out of solid materials. 

Obtain some fresh lime, some soda and some vinegar. The carbon dioxide 
is to be made by the action of the soda and the vinegar. The purpose of the 
lime is merely to test the gas so we may know that it is present. We -will 
need to prepare some lime water to do this. Pour water over the lime, and 
stir it until the lime is thoroughly slaked. Let it stand until the lime settles 
and the water becomes perfectly clear. Pour off this clear liquid into another 
bottle. Label it Lime Water. This will usually take about 24 hours. In 
order that you may be certain that the lime is dissolved in the clear water, 
taste it. Pour a little of the clear lime water into a tumbler. 

Into another tumbler put a little soda. Pour vinegar over the soda. Put 
the two tumblers together and carefully tip the tumbler containing the soda 
and vinegar, so that the gas which is formed will run over the edge of the 
tumbler like water. Do not pour the vinegar and soda mixture into the tum- 
bler containing the lime water, merely allow the gas which is forming to 
come in contact with the lime water. Notice the lime water. After a little 
while, shake it. What has happened? The milky color of the lime water 
shows that the gas formed by the action of vinegar and soda is carbon dioxide. 

Since carbon dioxide turns lime water milky, we can perform several 
experiments to show the presence of this substance. With a straw or piece of 
glass tubing, blow your breath through lime water for a little while. What is 
given off by the lungs? 

Set a dish of lime water on the floor in the room. If it turns milky, what 
can you say about the ventilation of the room? 

In your experiment, did anything lead you to believe that carbon dioxide 
is heavier than air? 

Perform the above experiment, using lime and hydrochloric acid instead 
of soda and vinegar. 

What becomes of the lime in the soil? 



I 



rnk 



/^ 



F/Q / /yJAKE TWO OF THFSF 



/-1-"- 



F/^ ^ /TJyAKE TWO OF THFSF 





1. 

\ 

V 






l^/M 









F/Q3 /)?A/<F TWO OF THESE 




PLATE 18. 
188 



Studies in Concrete 189 

AGRICULTURAL APPARATUS AND HOW IT IS MADE. 

Concrete Test Beam. 

This exercise is a lesson in mixing, tamping, troweling and reinforcing 
concrete. Each student should make a form complete as shown on the opposite 
page^ Plate 18. 

Place the form on a smooth board and make three beams as follows: 

Measure out clean, fine sand and pure cement. Mix the two in the pro- 
portion of one part of cement to two parts of sand. After they are mixed 
thoroughly moisten with a very little water and continue stirring. Do not put 
on too much water. The concrete will appear wetter after it has been stirred 
than it will at first. When completely mixed it should be merely moist enough 
to stick together when squeezed in the hand. 

Fill the form with the mixed concrete and tamp with a small rod. Tamp 
with light blows, and only enough to fill any openings that may have occurred 
in corners, etc. 

When filled and tamped rounding full take a straight edge and with a 
backward and forward movement crosswise carefully level off the top, so that 
the beam will be the exact size desired. 

Carefully smooth the surface with the trowel. Remove the form, and 
leaving the beam on the board, set it aside. In one-half hour, give the beam a 
light sprinkling of water, and about two hours later a heavy watering. In 
about twenty-four hours give the beam a complete soaking and leave until you 
are ready to test its strength. 

At first we might think that cement hardens merely by drying ; this is not 
exactly true, for it gets its hardness by a peculiar process of setting or curing. 
It will cure under water and, strange as it may seem, become even harder than 
when air cured; this is the reason for adding the water while it is curing — it 
also keeps its surface from drying too rapidly. You will learn many inter- 
esting facts by experimenting thoughtfully with cement. 

In a like manner, prepare a beam of a one to three mixture — that is, one 
part cement to three parts sand. 

Also prepare a beam of a one to three mixture and l-einforce it by using 
four wires one inch shorter than the beam. Place a wire in each corner, as 
near the edge as possible without showing. 



190 Soils and Fertilizers 

When the three beams have cured^ or hardened, for a week or two break 
each and compare as to the strength of the different mixtures. Compare the 
one to three mixture reinforced and not reinforced. 

If possible, make beams reinforced differently and of different mixtures. 
Write a discussion of the value of the different mixtures. Find some place 
where men are doing concrete work and find out what mixture they are using. 
Find out what reinforcing they are using and why. 

REFERENCES. 

Concrete for the Farmer; Universal Portland Cement Co., Chicago, Illi- 
nois. 

Concrete for the Barnyard; Universal Portland Cement Co., Chicago, Illi- 
nois. 

Small Farm Buildings of Concrete; Universal Portland Cement Co., Chi- 
cago, Illinois. 

Concrete Surface; Universal Portland Cement Co., Chicago, Illinois. 

The School Garden; Farmers Bulletin 218, United States Department of 
Agriculture. 



-~ 




" 





H^ 



^ li— H 



nr32 

©2 

FIG. 1. Make two of these. 



fo^}- 



1 



^^^ 




T 



W'^- 



± 



m h 




Make two of each. 




T 



--CNi 



X 




T 



(rtrj- 



i- 



h-rn 



Details of the forms for the 
Cement Match Safe. 



191 



192 



Soils and Fertilizers 




Cement Match Safe. 
Make forms for this article as shown on the opposite page. If you wish 
to have a design on the sides of your match safe, make a simple design and 
obtain the consent of the teacher before you attempt to carve it upon your 
form. A plain surface is easier to make and will look very well, although 
the match safe in the picture above has a design upon it. 

After the form is made, 
sandpaper it perfectly smooth, 
so that the cement will not stick 
to it. 

Assemble the form as 
shown in Fig. 58 and then pre- 
pare your cement as follows: 

Mix pure cement, add a 
very small amount of water and 
mix thoroughly. When com- 
pletely mixed the cement should 
merely stick together when 
squeezed in the hand, and no 
water should appear, no differ- 
ence how tightly it is squeezed. 
Fill the mould, tamp carefully, level off the bottom and then turn the 
entire form over. Smooth the cement around the core and insert a screw eye 
into the center of the core. By pulling on the screw eye and gently tapping 
the core carefully withdraw it. 

Then remove the 
form by tapping each 
piece gently and at the 
same time pulling slight- 

ly- 

Give the match safe 
a light sprinkling of 
water. Do not apply too 
much or the cement will 
become too soft and lose 
its shape. In two hours 
give it a heavy sprink- 
ling; ten to twenty hours Cement Match Safe FoVms Assembled. 



FIG. 57. 
Cement Match Safe. 




Studies in Concrete 193 

later give it a final heavy sprinkling. The next day your match safe is ready 
for use. 

If you can obtain white cement and white sand for your match safe it will 
add to its attractiveness. 



194 



Soils and Fertilizers 



LIST OF ARTICLES NEEDED IN THE CONCRETE 
LABORATORY. 

1. Benches at which pupils may work standing; may be made from 
boxes; do not need to be handsome^ but should be solid. One large table can 
be made to accommodate six to ten students. 

2. Shelves should be arranged for storage of apparatus, and articles 
under construction. 

3. A number of bins made of boxes, each holding from one to two 
cubic feet. 

4. The following (or as many as it is possible to obtain) to go into the 
bins: 

(a) Fine wash sand — free from dirt and very fine. 

(b) Fine pit sand — the finest to be obtained from pit. 

(c) White sand. This comes from the Lake Regions. You may be 

able to get some from a contractor. 

(d) Coarse sand — called also Torpedo Sand. 

(e) Fine gravel — called also Torpedo Gravel. 

(f) Coarse gravel — nothing smaller than l/o inch nor larger than 1 inch. 

(g) Crushed rock screenings — smaller bits from crushed rocks, 
(h) Crushed rock coarse — about ll/o inch in size. 

(i) Cinders — ^both fine and coarse, 
(j) Lime — both natural limestone and quicklime, 
(k) Cement. 

(1) Wire of diiferent sizes for reinforcing, 
(m) Wood for forms, tampers, straight edges, etc. 
(n) Mixing board — plain board 12 in. by 18 in., cleated on the bottom. 
(o) Small trowel — can usually be obtained at ten-cent store, 
(p) Measuring cups of tin. 
(q) Screen for screening sand and gravel, 
(r) Few tools for making forms. 

(s) Literature — which can be obtained from almost all cement com- 
panies, 
(t) Exhibits of concrete and reinforcing — can be obtained from con- 
cerns handling the products, and can be prepared in the labora- 
tory. 

NOTE. — Practically all of this apparatus can be made by the students 
at no expense. It is worth while. Try it. 



Studies in Concrete 



195 




CUJNCKJliTJD PUaX. 
The above concrete post can be made a very practical lesson. It is re-enforced 
at the edges by wire and can be made of various mixtures. The size can vary to 
suit the desire of the students. It may be made when completed into a calendar 
a paper weight, a thermometer holder, or a pen rack. Here is a g-ood chance to 
exercise the initiative of the students. 




CONCRETE TEAPOT STAND. 
The above teapot stand is made of Mosaic tile imbeded in concrete and then 
polished. The tile can usually be obtained for this article free of charge. The 
border may be made of either tin, brass or aluminum. It may be left off. However 
It gives the work a more finished appearance. 



196 



Soils and Fertilizers 



Acids 133 

GIVEN Off by Plants 134 

IN Clay Soils 55 

Neutralized by Lime 134 

Phosphates 131 

Acknowledgment of Cuts X 

Advantage of Water Passing 
Through a Soil 87 

Agricultural Apparatus : 

Alcohol Lamp from a Tin Box.. 161 

Cement Match Safe 192 

Concrete Test Beam 189 

Corn Sheller 121 

Depth Planting Box 161 

Dirt Band 77 

Fire Kindlers 33 

Flats for Growing Plants 78 

Flower Pot 23 

Flower Pot Stand 17 

Hotbed — how to make it 180 

Line Winder 79 

Mount for Small Samples 97 

Percolation Bottles 32 

Percolation Rack 32 

Plant Label 18 

Rope or a Monkey Wrench Used 

for a Pipe Wrench 63 

Scales — Home Made 50 

Scoop from Tin Cans 50 

Sharpening Scissors 51 

Soil Bins 63 

Soil Screens 50 

Specimen Mounts 162 

Specimen Case 96 

Still Made From Cake Tins 34 

Straight Edge 64 

Tool Box 121 

Window Box 17 

Air: 

AS AN Agent of Soil Formation. 22 

Amount in the Soil 20 

Breathed by Plants 6 

Chemical Action of 22 

Nitrogen in 125 

Plant 12 

Plant Foods in 7 

Required by Plants 2 

Water in 7 

Amendments, Soil 55 

Animals — as an Agent of Soil 
Formation 24 

Available Humus in the Soil 44 

Bacteria : 
as a Source of Contamination 
of Water 170 



Classes of 127 

Effect on Legumes 129 

How to Supply 127 

in Water 171 

IN Soil 171 

Life of 127 

Nature of 125 

Relationship to Legumes 126 

Calcium Oxide 133 

Capillary Water 66-67 

Amount a Soil Will Hold 71 

Methods of Showing Capillary 

Action 68 

Where it is Greatest 67 

Carbon : 

Changes of 5 

How Plants Obtain . . . .■ 5 

in the Air 5 

Caustic Lime 133 

Cement 182 

Ancient Cement 182 

Grinding Ravv^ Material to Make 

Cement ". . . 184 

History of 182 

Hydraulic Cement 184 

Manufacture of 184 

Newer Cement 184 

Portland Cement 184 

Stability of 183 

Chlorides in Water 175 

Classification : 

of Fertilizers 123 

of Soils 37 

Clay 37-182 

A Cold Soil 38-39 

A Heavy Soil 38 

Acid on 55 

Commercial Fertilizers on 56 

Crops Grown on 39 

Drainage of 55 

Effect of Humus on 56 

Effect of Drainage on 56 

Plant Food in 39 

Puddling 54 

Closed Drains as a Watering 
Place 88 

Clovers as Green Manures 156 

Cold Frames 168 

Commercial Fertilizers 143 

Complete Fertilizers 123 

Compost 168 



Index 



197 



Concrete : 

Articles Needed in a Laboratory 194 

Hollow Tile 86 

Importance of 185 

Manure Pits 153 

School Work in 185 

Suggestive Exercises 195 

What it is 185 

Conditions Necessary for Plant 

Growth 1 

Conservation : 

OF Soil Moisture 71 

BY Means of Soil Mulches 69 

Cow Peas as Green Manure 156 

Crops : 

FOR Soils 59 

for Clay Soil 39 

FOR Loam Soil 57 

When to Cultivate 69 

Cultivation : 

AS AN Agent of Soil Formation. 25 

injurious if Continued too Long 104 

Cultivators 115 

Disk 115 

Garden 116 

Proper Plowing Depth With.. 115 

Two Row 115 

Decay : 

How Decay of Humus Takes 

Place 40 

Its Relation to Mineral Sub- 
stance 43 

Decomposition 22 

Deep Tillage : 

Plowing With the Disk Plow.. 110 

Subsoil Plow Ill 

Tools for 105 

Depth of Plowing 110 

Best With a Cultivator 115 

of Drains 87 

Direct Fertilizers 123 

Disk : 

Advantages of Disking 114 

Advantages of the Disk Plow.. 110 

HARROW 112 

plow 109 

Where the Disk Plow Will 

Not Do 110 

Disease — How it May Be Carried. 170 



Drainage 55-81 

AND Humus 43 

BY Means of Open Ditches 87 

Depth of 87 

Distance Apart of 87-89 

Effect on Subsoil of 87 

Effect Upon Clay of 55 

GIVES Roots More Room 82 

History of 85 

How Water and Air Get Into 

a Drain 91 

How THE First Drains Were 

Made 85 

How Accomplished 86 

Indications That it Is Needed.. 84 

increases Weathering Action.. 83 

Laying a Drain 88-89 

OF Sandy Soil 58 

PREVENTS Heaving 84 

RAISES THE SoiL TEMPERATURE. ... 83 

SHOULD Admit Air to the Soil. . 91 

Soils That Should Have 92 

Value of 81 

When Not Necessary 84 

Why Needed in a Clay Soil.... 56 

Why We Drain Soils 66 

Dynamite Used to Break Up the 

Subsoil 112 

Elements and Compounds 10 

Elements Lacking in the Soil 9 

Essential Elements 123 

Evaporation Produces Coolness... 38 

Exercises in Concrete 195 

Experiments : 

(1) The Effect of Heat Upon 

Plant Growth 12 

(2) The Effect of Light Upon 

Plant Growth 13 

(3) The Effect of Moisture 

Upon Plant Growth 14 

(4) To Show That There Is 

Air in the Soil 14 

(5) Mineral Substance and 

Organic Substance 15 

(6) To Show That the Roots 

OF A Plant Give off Acid 28 

(7) To Determine How a Soil 

Becomes Acid. 28 

(8) Rain Water and Soil Water 29 

(9) To Show That Water Dis- 

solves Mineral Matter 

From the Soil 29 

(10) Oxidation 30 

(11) Difference in Soils Dem- 

onstrated 46 



198 



Soils and Fertilisers 



(12 

(13 

(14 

(15 
(16 

(17 

(18 

(19 



(20 

(21 
(22 

(23 

(24 

(25 

(26 

(27 

(28 

(29 
(30 

(31 

(32 
(33 
(34 
(35 
(36 

(37 

(38 
(39 

(40 
(41 
(42 



Physical Composition of 
Soils 47 

Temperature of Light and 

Dark Soils 48 

Why a Soil Becomes 

Cloddy 48 

Planning a Rotation 60 

The Value of Organic 

Plant Food 60 

Water Holding Power of 

Soils 61 

Rapidity of Percolation in 

Different Soils 61 

The Effect of Organic 

Matter on the Tenacity 

OF Soils 61 

Soils Absorb Substances 

From Solution 73 

Capillarity 73 

Distance Capillarity Will 

Lift Water 74 

The Three Kinds of Mois- 
ture IN the Soil 75 

Water Consumed by a 

Plant 76 

The Effect of Lime on 

Turbid Water 93 

The Effect of Lime on 

Soils 93 

The Effect of Drainage 

Upon Plant Growth 94 

Temperature of Drained 

AND Undrained Soils.... 94 

Soil Mulches 117 

Rolling a Soil Increases 

Capillarity 117 

The Effect of Puddling 

the Soil 118 

Action of Frost on Soils.. 118 

The Plow 119 

Testing Soils for Nitrogen. 140 
Testing Soils for Acidity. 140 
Testing Soils for Acidity 

by Means of Ammonia.. 158 
The Effect of Different 

Kinds of Soil Mulches.. 159 
Plant Food Collection.... 159 
The Weight of Soil per 

Cubic Foot 176 

Judging a Farm 176 

To Test for Carbonates... 186 
Carbon Dioxide 186 



Fall of a Drain F9 

how to Lay Out the 89 

Fall Plowing Ill 

Fertility : 

AND Humus 42 

and Legumes 129 



How Maintained 103 

Problems of Each Field in 53 

Fertilizers : 

Amount of Plant Food in 146 

Artificial 143 

Classes of 123 

Commercial 143-144 

Complete 123 

Definition of 123 

Direct 123 

Home Mixing of 146 

How Named 144 

How to Tell the Value of 144 

Indirect 123-124 

Kinds to Use 57 

Plant Food in 144 

When to Buy 143 

Fillers 146 

Firming the Seed Bed 114 

Floats 131 

Food for Plants 3 

Formation of Humus 43 

Free Water — in Soils 66 

Garden : 

The School 164 

cultivators 116 

Germinating Seeds in Sand 45 

Gravel 37 

Green Manures : 

Clovers as 156 

Cow Peas as 156 

Rye as 155 

Soy Beans as 156 

Vetch as 156 

Gumbo Soils 41 

Harrow — the Disk 112 

Harrowing — its Value US 

Health on the Farm 169 

Heat : 

Its Effect on Seeds 3 

for Plants 1-2 

Heaving Prevented by Drainage.. 84 

Heavy Soil — Clay 38 

History : 

of Drains 85 

OF Tillage 101 



Index 



199 



Home Mixing of Fertilizers 146 

Hotbed : 
AS A Solution to the Problem of 

THE School Garden 164 

AS A School Problem 168 

Compost for the 168 

Construction of 165 

How to Brace 166 

How to Fill 166-167 

Location 165 

Preparation of P'iller for 167 

Sashes 166 

Size 164 

When to Start the 168 

Humus 41 

absorbs Water 44-70 

AND Fertility 42 

available in the Soil 44 

Classes of Substances in 42 

Conditions Favorable for its 

Formation 43 

Drainage and 43 

Effect on Clay 56 

Effect on Plant Growth 44 

Effect on Sandy Soil 58 

Nature of 42 

Supply of 42 

Value on the Soil 44 

Hygroscopic Water 66-68 

Improvement of a Loam Soil 56 

Improvement of a Sandy Soil 58 

Improvement of a Clay Soil 54 

Impure Water for Animals 172 

Indirect Fertilizers 123-124 

Value of 123 

Inspecting a Well 173 

Instructions for Teachers, VITT, IX, X 

Intertillage — Tools for 106 

Introduction VII 

Laying a Drain 88 

How to Lay Out a Drain 89 

Marking the Fall of a Drain. . 89 

Leaves — Their Use to the Plant. 4 

Legumes : 

AND Fertility 129 

DO Not Always Obtain Nitrogen 129 

Nodules on the Roots 126 

Relationship Between Bacteria 

and 126 



Light — Its Effect on the Direc- 
tion of the Growth of Plants 3 

Lime 133-182 

Amount of Slaked Lime Equal 

TO Limestone 138 

AS A Fertilizer 138 

AS AN Agent for Neutralizing 

AN Acid 134 

Applying 138 

Burned Lime Equivalent to 

Limestone 138 

Burned or Caustic Lime on the 

Soil ; 137 

Compounds in Water 175 

How it Came Into Use as a Fer- 
tilizer 135 

How Lime is Made 183 

Indications That it is Needed.. 138 
IS NOT A Direct Fertilizer...... 133 

Properties of. , 183 

Quicklime 183 

Raw or Natural Lime 137 

Slaked 138 

Stops the Waste of Nitrogen 

From the Soil 136 

Stops the Waste of Phosphorus 

From the Soil 136 

When to Apply 138 

Limestone : 
added 136 

Amount to Use 136 

DOES NOT Tear Dovv^n the Soil.. 137 

How IT IS Quarried 135 

Uses of 135 

Loam 39 

A Warm Soil 40 

A Light Soil 40 

A Truck Soil 40 

Crops for 57 

Improvement of 56 

Organic Matter in 39 

Water Capacity of Loam Soil.. 39 

Manure : 

AS A Fertilizer 154 

Barnyard 148 

Clovers as 156 

Cow Peas as 156 

Disadvantages of Spreading by 

Hand 148 

Green 153 

How to Apply to the Best Ad- 
vantage 146 

Loss of 152 

Pits of Concrete 153 

Rye as a Green Manure Crop.. 155 • 

Soy Beans as 156 

Spreaders 148 



200 



Soils and Fertilizers 



Storage of, 152 

Value of Rye as 155 

' Waste of 150 

Where Needed Most 146 

Mechanical Support of Plants... 11 

Methods of Saving Moisture 71 

Mineral Matter 11, 20 

ITS Relation to Decay 43 

Moisture: 
Amount Required by a Corn 

Plant 58 

Its Effect Upon Plowing 104 

Its Effect Upon Seeds 3 

Methods of Saving 72 

Required by Plants 1-2 

Soil 20 

The Conservation of Soil 71 

When Most is Received 71 

Yielded by Sandy Soil 59 

Mouldboard : 

Disadvantages of Plow 110 

Kinds 107 

Plow 106 

Muck 40 

Burning to Improve 57 

How Formed 40 

Improvement of 57 

Where Found 40 

Mud Holes on the Farm 174 

Nature — How She Saves Her Ma- 
terial 22 

Nitrogen 124 

Compounds of .' 129 

How Plants Obtain 125 

IN the Air 125 

Its Origin 124 

Its Use in the Plant 129 

not Always Obtained by Leg- 
umes 129 

Waste Stopped by Lime in the 
Soil 136 

Nodules on the Roots of Legumes 126 

Oepn Ditches : 

as Drains 87 

Where They Must be Used 88 

Organic Matter 11,20 

IN Loam 39 

Testing Water for 173 

Oxidation 22 

How TO Prevent it 23 



Partnership Between Plants 126 

Percolation 66, 87 

Phosphorus 130 

Acid 132 

Compounds to Use 132 

Compounds of 130 

Floats 131 

How IT IS Removed From the 

Soil 130 

How TO Apply 131 

How TO Supply 130 

Its Use in the Plant 130 

Raw Rock 131 

Saved by Lime in the Soil 136 

Plant : 

as a Friend of Man 6 

gives off Acid 134 

Life i 

Problems 81 

Plants : 

How They Obtain Nitrogen 125 

. How They Live in Different 

Soils 59 

How They Resemble Animals.. 9 

NEED Phosphorus 130 

Use of the Parts of 4 

Plant Food 9 

IN a Commercial Fertilizer 144 

IN a Complete Fertilizer 146 

IN Clay 39 

IN THE AlK 7 

Unavailable : 124 

Plant Growth Affected by Humus 44 

Plow 106 

Advantages of the Disk Type of 110 
Disadvantages of the Mould- 
board Type of 10 

Disk Type of 109 

For Each Type of 109 

How IT Pulverizes the Soil 106 

Its Improvement 101 

Mouldboard Type of 106 

Subsoil 1 1 1 

The First 101 

Plowing : 
AT the Same Depth in Sandy 

Soil 58 

Deep Plowing With a Disk 110 

Depth of 110 

IN the Spring HI 

When Soil is too Dry 105 

Pore Space 68 



Index 



201 



Potash 132 

Plants Needing it. . ." 133 

Where Found 133 

Where Needed 133 

Puddled Soil 54 

What it is 105 

Purpose of Tillage 101 

Questions and Problems, 18, 19, 35, 36, 
52, 65, 80, 98, 122, 142, 163, 181. 

Quicklime 133, 183 

Rain: 
Amount Required to Produce a 
Crop 71 

Work Required to Produce a. . . . 2 

Raw Rock Phosphate 131 

References, 19, Z6, 62, 72, 116, 139, 157, 
181, 190. 

Relation Between Plants and 
Animals 5 

Relationship of Tilth to Root 
System 103 

Rollers 114 

Use of 114 

Where Best Used 115 

Roots— Use of the Roots of Plants 4 

Rye as a Green Manure Crop 155 

Its Value 156 

Sand 44, 182 

A Warm Soil 45 

for Germinating Seeds 45 

Sanitation for the Farmer 170 

Sashes for the Hotbed. 166 

Seed — Plant Food in the 3 

Shallow Tillage Tools 105 

Soil: 

Advantages of Disking 114 

Amendments 55 

Amount of Water it Will Hold 70 

Bacterial Life in 171 

Conditions Necessary for the 

Plant 21 

Drainage of Sandy Soil 58 

Fertility the Farmer's Problem 53 

Formation by Animals 24 

Formation by Cultivation 25 

Formation by Plants 24 



Formation by Temperature 23 

Formation by Water 24 

How Classified 2)7 

How Phosphorus is Removed 

From 130 

How Formed 21 

Humus on Sandy Soil 58 

Improvement of Sandy Soil 58 

Improvement — What it Means.. 53 

Moisture 20 

Plowed Wet 55 

Structure 25 

Structure of Sandy 58 

Temperature I n f l u e n c e d by 

Drainage 83 

That Needs Drainage 92 

TO BE Placed in a Hotbed 167 

Types of Z7 

Warm 59 

What it is 20 

Why We Drain 66 

Yields Moisture Readily 59 

Soy Beans as a Green Manure 
Crop 156 

Spring Plowing Ill 

Subsoil 45 

Broken by Dynamite 112 

Plow Ill 

Its Effect Upon Drainage 87 

Sulphates — Testing Water for... 175 

Surface Soil 45 

Table of Contents HI, IV, V, VI 

Temperature : 
as an Agent of Soil Formation. 23 

of Clay Soil 38-39 

OF Loam Soil 40 

OF Sandy Soil 59 

Texture 25 



Tile : 
FOR Underground Drains. 

OF Concrete 

Size Best to Use 



Tillage : 

Deep 101 

History of 101 

How to Show the Benefits of 102 

Purpose of 101 

Shallow 101 

The Story of 99 

Tools for Deep Tillage 105 

Tools for Intertillage 106 



202 



Soils and Fertilizers 



Tools for Shallow Tillage 105 

What it Does 102 

What it is 101 

Tilth : 
Its Relation to the First 

Growth of Plants 103 

Its Relation to the Root System 103 

To Restore 104 

Value of Securing a Good Con- 
dition OF 102 

Types of Soils 37 

Unavailable Plant Food 124 

Underground Drains 87 

Vetch 156 

Water : 

Absorbed ry Humus . . . '. 44 

Amount Different Soils Will 

Hold 70 

as a Food for Plants 7-8 

as an Agent of Soil Formation 24 

Bacterial Life in 171 

Capillary 66-67 

Capillary Water a Soil Will 

Hold 71 



Classes of 171 

Free 66 

Holding Power of Soils 70 

How it Gets Into the Plant 8-66 

Hygroscopic 66-68 

In the Air 6-7 

In Relation to Plant Life 7 

Lifting Power of Fine and 

Coarse Soils 68 

Passing Through the Soil an 

Advantage 67 

Percentage in a Tomato Com- 
pared With the Percentage in 

Milk 8 

Percolation of 66 

Place Where Live Stock Can 
Obtain Water in a Closed 

Drain 88 

Table 66 

Testing for Impurities 173-175 

Weathering Increased by Drainage 83 

Well 172 

Wet Soil 55,81 

Worn Out Soil 42 



